Content Type: Journal Article / Publishing Institution: Institute for Palestine Studies / Publication Year: within 25 Years / Journal: Journal of Palestine Studies

301. Quarterly Update on Conflict and Diplomacy

Author:: Sasha Heroy
Publication Date:: 12-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The Quarterly Update is a summary of bilateral, multilateral, regional, and international events affecting the Palestinians and the future of the peace process. More than 100 print, wire, television, and online sources providing U.S., Israeli, Arab, and international independent and government coverage of unfolding events are surveyed to compile the Quarterly Update. The most relevant sources are cited in JPS's Chronology section, which tracks events day by day.
Political Geography:: Israel, Palestine, and Arabia

302. Settlement Monitor

Author:: Geoffrey Aronson
Publication Date:: 12-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This section covers items-reprinted articles, statistics, and maps-pertaining to Israeli settlement activities in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights. Unless otherwise stated, the items have been written by Geoffrey Aronson for this section or drawn from material written by him for Report on Israeli Settlement in the Occupied Territories (hereinafter Settlement Report), a Washington-based bimonthly newsletter published by the Foundation for Middle East Peace. JPS is grateful to the foundation for permission to draw on its material.
Political Geography:: Israel

303. A1. The Geneva Initiative, Security Annex to the Geneva Accord, Geneva, 15 September 2009 (excerpts)

Publication Date:: 12-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: On 15 September 2009, the private Israeli-Palestinian peace initiative known as the Geneva Initiative published 13 detailed annexes to the Geneva Accord, the draft framework for a final status agreement between Israelis and Palestinians unveiled in 2003. The Geneva Initiative was launched by former Israeli justice minister Yossi Beilin and then Palestinian Authority (PA) minister Yasir Abid Rabbuh in their private capacities in 2001. The original accord, while immediately rejected by then Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon, was met with considerable international backing, but never formed the basis of any official negotiations.
Topic:: Security
Political Geography:: Geneva, Israel, and Palestine

304. A2. International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Resolution on Israeli Nuclear Capabilities, Vienna, 18 September 2009

Publication Date:: 12-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: For the first time in nearly two decades, the IAEA passed a resolution in September 2009 expressing concern about Israeli nuclear capabilities and urging Israel to accede to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Israel is one of three countries in the world (India and Pakistan being the other two) that have not signed the NPT. The measure, sponsored by Arab states, narrowly passed by a vote of 49 in favor, 45 against, and16 abstentions during the annual meeting of the IAEA general conference (the agency's highest policy-making body). The IAEA last voted on a similar resolution in1991, but no action had been taken since then on this matter. Israel was quick to condemn the resolution and vowed not to cooperate with the nuclear body on any of the resolution's provisions.
Political Geography:: India and Marshall Islands

305. A3. Trade Union Advisory Committee to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), "Employment and Workers Rights in Israel and the West Bank," Paris, 21-23 October 2009 (excerpts)

Publication Date:: 12-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The OECD opened membership discussions with Israel in May 2007, and in November of that year approved a road map for accession involving a process of review by a number of OECD committees, including the Employment, Labor, and Social Affairs Committee for which this report was written. While Israels admission, which ultimately requires the approval of all member states, is expected to be voted on in May 2010, OECD ofcials never committed to an ofcial deadline.The three main areas in which Israel's candidacy have been considered problematic are bribery of foreign officials, intellectual property rights, and Israel's definition of its territory, which includes occupied East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights.
Political Geography:: Israel and Jerusalem

306. A4. Amnesty International, "Troubled Waters-Palestinians Denied Fair Access to Water," London, 27 October 2009 (excerpts)

Publication Date:: 12-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This 112-page report by human rights NGO Amnesty International examines the main patterns and trends affecting Palestinians access to water in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, highlighting the extent to which Israels discriminatory policies affect their rights in this area. Parts of the report not reproduced here include detailed chapters on the water resources available in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories (OPT), the water crisis in Gaza, water-related expulsions of Palestinians, the effects of military attacks on water resources, and Palestinian mismanagement of water resources.
Political Geography:: Israel, Palestine, and Gaza

307. A5. UN Secretary-General, Palestinian Children in Israeli Detention, New York, 6 November 2009 (excerpts)

Publication Date:: 12-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The following report, covering the period from September 2008 to August 2009 and submitted to the UN General Assembly, provides an overview of key aspects of the humanitarian and human rights situation in the occupied Palestinian territories and Israel, such as the Israeli blockade on Gaza, the firing of rockets against Israeli civilian areas, restrictions on freedom of movement in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, and house demolitions and forced displacement in area C and East Jerusalem.
Topic:: Human Rights
Political Geography:: New York, Israel, Palestine, Gaza, and United Nations

308. A6. International Crisis Group (ICG), "Palestine: Salvaging Fatah," Ramallah, Gaza City, Brussels, 12 November 2009 (excerpts)

Publication Date:: 12-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: While the main concern at the conference was electing a new leadership, other significant issues were discussed. Eighteen committees dealt with a wide range of topics, though meetings for the most part were sparsely attended, in many cases by no more than 10 or 15 delegates. Most sessions did not produce minutes, and significant decisions were left for the new leadership bodies to tackle later. No action was taken on corruption, for instance, despite the fact that it was a major concern entering the conference.
Topic:: Corruption
Political Geography:: Palestine, Gaza, and Brussels

309. B1. Five Points of Clarification on the Fatah Political Program, Ramallah, 16-19 October 2009

Publication Date:: 12-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: A major question in developing Fatahs political program at the sixth General Conference, which took place in Aug 2009, was how to treat Fatahs historical commitment to armed struggle. While the issue was treated gingerly in the official program that ultimately emerged at the conference (see Doc. B3 in JPS 153 for a summary), a slightly more explicit "declaration" was appended to the program and published along with the definitive version of the program after ratification by Fatah's Revolutionary Council in October.

310. B2. Turki al-Faisal, Conditions for Normalizing Relations with Israel, New York Times, 12 September 2009

Publication Date:: 12-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The United States and other Western powers have for some time been pushing Saudi Arabia to make more gestures toward Israel. More recently, the crown prince of Bahrain urged greater communication with Israel and joint steps from Arab states to revive the peace process.
Political Geography:: United States, New York, Turkey, Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain

311. C1. PM Benjamin Netanyahu, Speech to the UN General Assembly, New York, 24 September 2009 (excerpts)

Publication Date:: 12-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Nearly 62 years ago, the United Nations recognized the right of the Jews, an ancient people 3,500 years old, to a state of their own in their ancestral homeland. I stand here today as the prime minister of Israel, the Jewish state, and I speak to you on behalf of my country and my people.
Political Geography:: New York, Israel, and United Nations

312. C2. B'Tselem and HaMoked, The Internment of Unlawful Combatants, Jerusalem, October 2009 (excerpts)

Publication Date:: 12-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: In 2000, Israel's Supreme Court ruled that the state was not allowed to continue holding Lebanese nationals in administrative detention as "bargaining chips" for the return of Israeli prisoners of war and bodies, as they do not pose a threat. Among the detainees held were Mustafa Dirani andShaykh 'Abd al-Karim Obeid. To enable the state to continue holding them, the Knesset enacted, in 2002, the Internment of Un-lawful Combatants Law (hereafter in this chapter: the Law).
Political Geography:: Israel

313. C3. Ono Academic College, "Excluded-Educated People in Quality Professions in Israeli Society," Kiryat Ono, 11 November 2009 (excerpts)

Publication Date:: 12-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: An attitude questionnaire was completed by 568 college and university students studying at different institutions in Israel. Most of the Arab, Ethiopian-descent, and ultra-Orthodox students who completed the questionnaire expressed an identical feeling: In Israel 2009, there is no equal opportunity.
Political Geography:: Israel and Ethiopia

314. D1. President Barack Obama, Speech to the UN General Assembly, New York, 23 September 2009 (excerpts)

Publication Date:: 12-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: I will also continue to seek a just and lasting peace between Israel, Palestine, and the Arab world. We will continue to work on that issue. Yesterday, I had a constructive meeting with Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu and President [Mahmud] Abbas. We have made some progress. Palestinians have strengthened their efforts on security. Israelis have facilitated greater freedom of movement for the Palestinians. As a result of these efforts on both sides, the economy in the West Bank has begun to grow. But more progress is needed. We continue to call on Palestinians to end incitement against Israel, and we continue to emphasize that America does not accept the legitimacy of continued Israeli settlements.
Political Geography:: Israel and Palestine

315. D2. U.S. State Department, 2009 Report on International Religious Freedom, Washington, 26 October 2009 (excerpts)

Publication Date:: 12-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Based on its pre-1967 borders, the country has an area of 7,685 square miles. The country has a population of 7.4 million (including settlers living in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem), of which 5.6 million are Jews, 1.5 million are Arab Muslims and Christians, and 320,000 are classified as "other"-mostly persons from the former Soviet Union who immigrated under the Law of Return but who did not qualify as Jews according to the Orthodox Jewish definition used by the government for civil procedures.
Topic:: Population
Political Geography:: Jerusalem

316. Chronology: 16 August - 15 November 2009

Author:: Sasha Heroy
Publication Date:: 12-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This section is part of a chronology begun in JPS 13, no. 3 (Spring 1984). Chronology dates reflect Eastern Standard Time (EST). For a more comprehensive overview of events related to the al-Aqsa intifada and of regional and international developments related to the peace process, see the Quarterly Update on Conflict and Diplomacy in this issue.
Political Geography:: Israel

317. Bibliography of Periodical Literature

Author:: Norbert Scholz
Publication Date:: 12-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This section lists articles and reviews of books relevant to Palestine and the Arab-Israeli conflict. Entries are classified under the following headings: Reference and General; History (through 1948) and Geography; Palestinian Politics and Society; Jerusalem; Israeli Politics, Society, and Zionism; Arab and Middle Eastern Politics; International Relations; Law; Military; Economy, Society, and Education; Literature, Arts, and Culture; Book Reviews; and Reports Received.
Political Geography:: Israel, Palestine, and Arabia

318. From the Editor

Author:: Rashid I. Khalidi
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Since ISRAEL' S winter 2008–2009 offensive against the Gaza Strip, it has seemed that we are living through a period of après-Gaza. Whether it was because of the brutality of that offensive with its lopsided 100-to-1 casualty ratio, the unusually critical media treatment of Israel that eventually emerged, a greater international awareness of the pernicious nature of the Israeli-Egyptian blockade of the Strip, or the ongoing impact of the Goldstone report, echoes of what happened then in Gaza have lingered on. It is of course too early to make a definitive judgment of the impact of the war on Gaza, but at least in the short term, it appears to have been a turning point.
Political Geography:: Israel and Egypt

319. "The Most Moral Army in the World"?: The New "Ethical Code" of the Israeli Military and the War on Gaza

Author:: Muhammad Ali Khalidi
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This article examines the content of and justification for a new "ethical code" designed for the Israeli army to take into account the "fight against terror." It argues that the code contains two innovations: it includes acts aimed exclusively at military targets in its definition of "terrorism," and it contains a principle of distinction that prioritizes the lives of citizen combatants over those of noncitizen noncombatants, contrary to centuries of theorizing about the morality of war as well as international humanitarian law. The article suggests that the principle of distinction played a direct role in Israel's offensive in Gaza in winter 2008-2009, as demonstrated by a preponderance of testimony indicating that Israeli military commanders explicitly instructed soldiers to give priority to their own lives over those of Palestinian noncombatants.
Political Geography:: Israel

320. The Polarization of the Palestinian Political Field

Author:: Jamil Hilal
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Arguing that the polarization of the Palestinian political field did not start with Hamas's takeover of the Gaza Strip in 2007, the author analyzes the factors that have eroded the cohesiveness and vitality of the Palestinian polity, namely, the paralysis of Palestinian political institutions, territorial and social fragmentation, and egregious outside interference. In this context, and in the absence of an internal Palestinian debate about the objectives of holding elections under occupation, the author shows that the timing and circumstances of the 2006 legislative elections were bound to precipitate the current state of disarray. Finally, he considers the way forward, highlighting the potential of public pressure in promoting national reconciliation. NO ONE WOULD QUESTION today the utter disarray of the Palestinian political field [i], where two separate entities governed by bitterly rival factions are ensconced in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, one under Israeli occupation, the other under a suffocating Israeli siege. Each of the two governments, one primarily secular (controlled by Fatah), the other “Islamist” (controlled by Hamas), has its own security forces and, to the extent possible, bans the activities of members of the rival faction within “its” territory (if it does not arrest or imprison them). Both political “entities” are heavily dependent on external funding (from different donors) and are allied to different regional powers overtly or covertly opposed to one another. As time passes, the two entities grow further and further apart, threatening a repetition in some form of the Pakistan-Bangladesh experience. This state of polarization did not begin in June 2007 when Hamas installed itself as the dominant political, military, and administrative power in the Gaza Strip while Fatah took steps to tighten its control over the West Bank. Rather, these events deepened trends long in the making, enfeebling still further a political field that had been battered since the early 1990s by many changes and events, regional and international. The present essay [ii] seeks to highlight the factors underlying the precariousness and vulnerability of the Palestinian polity and its consequent polarization, the paralysis of its national institutions, and egregious foreign interference. Similar situations have been noted in other regional states subject to invasion and war (Lebanon, Iraq, Somalia, Afghanistan, and the Sudan, among others), but the disarray is perhaps more visible in Palestine for reasons relating to its history, its specific regional and international context, and its ongoing subjection to settler-colonialism and territorial fragmentation. THE MAKING OF THE PALESTINIAN POLITICAL FIELD The Palestinian political field differs from most others in that it includes Palestinian communities with differing socioeconomic, state, and civil society structures, not only in historic Palestine (the 1967 occupied territories and Israel) but also in the diaspora (al-shatat) created by the 1948 Nakba. It was also formed outside the national territory, not by a state but by a national liberation movement that arose in the Palestinian shatat. From the outset, then, lacking a sovereign state, the Palestinian political field has been subject to powerful outside influences and pressures. Its leading institution, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), was founded at the initiative of the Arab states in 1964 and was initially under their control. It was only after the 1967 war, when the PLO was democratically taken over by Palestinian resistance organizations led by Fatah, that it became a popular mass movement and, several years later, the “sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people.” For the next twenty-some years, the PLO and its constituent organizations conducted their political, military, and other activities from bases in countries bordering Israel and later from Tunisia. While this situation made it vulnerable to the machinations of various regional powers seeking to determine the political and economic shape of the Middle East, the fact that the pressures were conflicting helped the PLO maintain to a tangible degree its hegemony over a relatively autonomous Palestinian political field throughout the 1970s and 1980s. PLO hegemony over the Palestinian political field began to be challenged in the late 1980s with the emergence in the occupied territories of political Islam, whose main embodiment, Hamas, had been established at the start of the first intifada in 1987, and the smaller Islamic Jihad several years earlier. Both these organizations were indigenous, having grown out of local branches of the Muslim Brotherhood, and their prominence in the first intifada showed them to be a force to be reckoned with. However, it was not until the 1993 signing of the Oslo accords, which laid out the stages that were supposed to lead to full peace with Israel by the end of the decade, that the magnitude of the challenge posed by political Islam became fully apparent. Under the Oslo accords, the PLO leadership returned from its long exile to the Palestinian territories, thus moving the center of gravity of Palestinian politics to the “inside” for the first time since 1948. There it established the Palestinian Authority (PA), a self-governing body whose powers were sharply limited by the Israeli occupier but which was understood as the first step on the road to statehood. The accords were fiercely opposed by political Islam, as well as by a number of secular PLO factions, most importantly the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP). With a growing following, and already endowed with a high degree of discipline and organization, political Islam and especially Hamas found in opposition to Oslo a powerful cause around which to mobilize.
Political Geography:: Palestine and Gaza

321. The Palestinian Economy and Future Prospects: Interview with Mohammad Mustafa, Head of the Palestine Investment Fund

Author:: Salim Tamari, Khalid Farraj, and Nasr Abdul Karim
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Dr. Mohammad Mustafa is chairman and CEO of the Palestine Investment Fund (PIF) and an economic adviser to Palestinian Authority President Mahmud Abbas. PIF, the leading investor in Palestine, is a publicly limited company fully owned by the people of Palestine. It was established in 2003 with the transfer of assets managed by the Palestinian Authority. Financially and administratively autonomous, it is governed by an independent board of directors and a general assembly representing civil society, nongovernmental organizations, academia, and the public and private sectors. In pursuit of its mandate—which is to strengthen the local economy through investments that foster sustainable economic development while maintaining and increasing existing national reserves—PIF owns direct majority and minority stakes in companies and follows a business model based on public-private partnerships. Currently, PIF has approximately $800 million in assets under management and is leading a $4 billion investment program aimed at stimulating economic growth and creating over 100,000 new job opportunities within the next five years. The interview was conducted in Amman, Jordan, in mid-December 2009 by Nasr Abdul Karim, former dean of economics at An-Najah University, Nablus, and by Salim Tamari and Khalid Farraj, respectively director and associate director of the Institute for Palestine Studies, Ramallah. Abdul Karim: We wanted to start by asking about the current state of the Palestinian economy, particularly after the 2007 split [between Fatah and Hamas]. There have been reports of significant improvement in the gross domestic product (GDP). Is the improvement due to government action or to Israeli steps to facilitate trade and economic development after Netanyahu's call for “economic peace”? Mustafa: There's been a marked improvement in the Palestinian economy in the West Bank in the last three years. Obviously, it hasn't reached where we want it to be. The Israeli occupation and its harsh and arbitrary policies negatively impact its performance and make it heavily dependent on the Israeli economy. Despite our recent efforts to decrease trade with Israel, it still constitutes 90 percent of total Palestinian trade. The result is an economy with only limited self-reliance and high donor dependency. And even though it is stable at present, it's still below its 1967 and 1999 levels. Let me go into some detail with regard to the current economic indicators. According to the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund [IMF], the growth rate for the first half of 2009 was about 5 percent. Without Israeli restrictions, it would have been higher, perhaps as much as 12 percent. There is no question that the very considerable international support received by the [Palestinian] Authority—which amounted to $1.7 billion in 2008 and a bit less in 2009—played a large part in realizing this growth, but a significant part also resulted from the political stability and improved security in the West Bank, and from institutional, legal, and economic reforms. These two factors—international support and the improved situation on the ground—led to the recovery, albeit partial, of the private sector. One factor that had very adverse effects on the economy this year—especially on small investors whose ventures depend on Israel—was the difference in the exchange rate of the U.S. dollar against the Israeli shekel. The world economic downturn also had an impact on inflation, which decreased by 2 percent in 2009 relative to 2008 thanks to a drop in the price of certain commodities, specifically oil and some foodstuffs. It could decline further in 2010. Finally, unemployment remains extremely high, reaching 26 percent overall—40 percent in Gaza, 18 percent in the West Bank. These figures do not even include disguised unemployment. For the West Bank, however, we expect to see the rate begin to fall soon. We still have a long way to go, of course, before we reach our goal of an independent, sustainable economy, but this requires not only continuing the program of reform but also removing Israeli restrictions. Farraj: You mentioned unemployment in Gaza. What about the economic situation there? Mustafa: Gaza's economy is in a catastrophic state as a result of Israel's embargo and the absence of Palestinian legitimacy. The economy has been totally destroyed, particularly the private sector. The organized destruction of the economy in the past two years has completely done away with the economic wealth it took decades to build. Some enterprises established in the 1920s and 1930s have now been destroyed and cannot be rebuilt without huge effort. At present, Gaza's economy is based on three sources: (1) the salaries paid by the Authority to nearly 60,000 employees, which support about a million people; (2) the salaries and donor aid paid by the government in Gaza to its employees and members of its security forces; and (3) informal trade—in other words, the tunnels. I think Israel's ongoing embargo and policy of collective punishment of the entire Gaza population is utterly disgraceful. Even a partial reconstruction of Gaza has not been allowed to take place. The Sharm al-Shaykh donor conference [held on 2 March 2009] raised $4 billion, which was allocated for reconstruction, yet to this day there is no mechanism for getting even a fraction of these funds into Gaza. Furthermore, the Israeli embargo prevents materials, such as cement, steel, and wood, needed to restore destroyed homes and buildings from entering. Certainly Gaza's economy was already bad before the blockade, but with the ongoing embargo and the catastrophic destruction of the Israeli invasion it continues to get worse. In my view, the Palestinian economy will never be strong until the two halves of the nation are reunited, national reconciliation is achieved, and Palestinian legality in Gaza is restored.
Political Geography:: Palestine and Gaza

322. Remembering Hasib Sabbagh (1920-2010)

Author:: Walid Khalidi
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Hasib Sabbagh, who died on 12 January 2010 after a long illness, was arguably the preeminent Palestinian entrepreneur in the business and contracting fields in the post-1948 period. Born to an old and distinguished Greek Catholic family of Safad in Eastern Galilee, Sabbagh established the Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC) in 1945 in Haifa with several partners after graduating in engineering from the American University of Beirut. Under his dynamic leadership and with the cooperation of his life-long partner, Said Khoury, the CCC (which Sabbagh reconstituted in Lebanon after the fall of Palestine) evolved from a modest local enterprise into the giant global multinational corporation that it is today. Using the CCC as his base, he began as of the early 1970s to devote his great energy to the service of Palestine, not only through his philanthropic ventures promoting social and educational causes, but also through his behind-the-scenes political mediation and reconciliation efforts. The following reminiscences trace the unusual partnership and friendship between the author, whose orientation was largely academic, and Sabbagh, whose approach reflected his big-business milieu. The two met in 1972 around the time when Sabbagh was embarking on his public service phase. They became fast friends and remained so until Sabbagh's death, joined by their common dedication to Palestine. The memoir includes Sabbagh's own account of his departure from Palestine in 1948 and sheds light on some relatively little known activities of the Palestinian business and academic elite in the post-1967 period. I met Hasib Sabbagh for the first time in 1972 in Beirut, but his name had been familiar to me since the late 1930s when he was a student at the Government Arab College in Jerusalem, whose principal was my father. The principal's residence was just behind the main college building, and I heard his name mentioned while eavesdropping on a faculty meeting held in my father's study. The fact that Hasib was a pupil at the Arab College already says a lot about him. The college was the apex of the Arab, male, public (in the American sense) educational system. Admission to it was based exclusively on merit and the most stringent entrance qualifications. Although a boarding institution, its fees were nominal. Entrants were at the top of their class at the mid-high school level, where the college classes began. Its recruitment network encompassed the entire country, generating the stiffest competition among applicants and tapping the best Arab talent, rural and urban, irrespective of social or financial status. The faculty, graduates of the best British universities, were mostly Arab, and the curriculum was a balanced synthesis of the humanities and the sciences as well as of Arab Islamic culture and the Western classical heritage, both Greek and Latin being taught. . . . Had Palestine not fallen in 1948, the college would have become its national university. In most ways, the Arab College was unique in the Arab world, and possibly in the third world. Its graduates constitute to this day an elite with their own esprit de corps. Between the 1930s and 1972, when our very different paths finally converged, the watershed year in Hasib's life and mine—as for all Palestinians—was, of course, 1948. The events of that year have remained a permanent item on our agenda as, day after day and over the years, Hasib and I “tired the sun with talking and sent it down the sky.” Coaxing his memory, the following is what I have pieced together from Hasib's reminiscences of how he left Haifa, his adopted city, which in his mind was second only to the true capital of Palestine, his hometown Safad. Hasib's Tale When the final Jewish onslaught came on 23 April, Arab morale broke down and there started a panicky flight from the city by land and sea. The British forces escorted convoy after convoy out of town, encouraging the evacuation of Haifa. We lived in the Abbas quarter, and close by was the house of George Mu`ammar, a business partner and an active member of Haifa's National Committee. Mu`ammar was distraught by the flight of Haifa's residents, and I can still see him standing on his balcony, haranguing the crowds surging by below, pleading with them not to leave. When I saw this I ran up to him and shouted: “What on earth are you doing? Leave these people alone! Can't you see that if they stay and get killed, you will be blamed?” He persisted, but I pulled him down and made him stop. I myself had decided to go to Safad, my hometown, which was in the middle of Arab territory and strongly held by us. But with the fighting in eastern and western Galilee at the time, the easiest way to reach Safad was from the north, through south Lebanon, which meant I had first to go to Beirut. Our company had lorries in Haifa, and I invited anybody who wanted to travel to Beirut to climb on board. Soon the lorries were crammed to capacity, and the British escorted us to the Lebanese frontier. We arrived in Beirut on the afternoon of 23 April. There I met Captain Emile Jumay`an, who was with the Transjordanian Arab Legion and an old family friend. I told him I had just come from Haifa, which had fallen, and he asked me what I intended to do. I said I was going to Safad after seeing my brother Habib and my sister Suad, who had just come [to Beirut] from there. He told me not to go, although he was on his way there himself on a mission involving the garrison under the command of the Arab League's military committee based in Damascus. When my brother Habib, who had been sent by the Safad National Committee to get arms and ammunition, heard what Jumay`an had said, he decided to stay behind in Beirut. But my sister Suad, who had come to Beirut on behalf of the Red Crescent to take back medicines and bandages, insisted on completing her mission regardless. After two weeks in Beirut, I set off for Safad myself. But when I reached the border on 9 May, masses of people were coming from the direction of Safad, among them my brother Munir and my sister Suad, who was disheveled, barefooted, and with torn clothing. Safad had fallen, so we returned to Beirut, and, as I contemplated our situation, I decided that what the family most urgently needed was money. We had plenty in Barclays Bank in Haifa, so I made up my mind to return there, and set off by sea from Tyre. The journey was stormy and the boat was packed, with everybody vomiting over everybody else. The boat docked in the harbor near the government hospital on 10 May, five days before the end of the British Mandate. Arriving in the city we saw both British and Haganah forces. The Haganah troops looked at our identity cards and, the Mandate still being in force, allowed us in. I made my way to our house in Abbas. Shops were closed, the streets were empty, and Haganah troops were all over. Our house had not been touched. Soon after my arrival, I went to call on Mu`ammar, who was delighted to see me. He chided me for leaving and tried to convince me to stay: “If you stay behind, you and I can do a lot of business together.” I said I had come only to withdraw money from the bank.
Political Geography:: Palestine, Jerusalem, and Lebanon

323. Trip Notes on a Return to Israel and the West Bank: Reflections on U.S. Peacemaking, the Security Mission, and What Should be Done

Author:: Col. (USA Ret.) Philip J. Dermer
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The following document, previously unpublished, was written in March 2010 by a recentlyretired (June 2009) U.S. Army colonel with thirty years experience in the Middle East, including tours of duty and advisory roles (in both military/security and civilian domains) from North Africa to the Persian Gulf. The subject of the informal report is the author's first two trips as a "civilian" to Israel and the West Bank, where he had served two tours of duty, most recently as U.S. military attaché in Tel Aviv during Israel's 2005 unilateral disengagement from Gaza and the formation of the U.S. Security Coordinator's (USSC) mission to reform Palestinian Authority (PA) security forces. Written as an internal document for military colleagues and government circles, the report has been circulating widely-as did the author's earlier briefings on travel or missions in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, and especially Iraq-among White House senior staff, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Defense Intelligence Agency, CENTCOM (U.S. Central Command), EUCOM (U.S. European Command), and the USSC team. The document's focus is the state of the "peace process" and the current situation in the West Bank, with particular attention to the PA security forces and the changes on the ground since the author's last tour there ended in mid-2007. But the real interest of the paper lies in the message directed at its intended audience of military and government policy officials-that is, its frank assessment of the deficiencies of the U.S. peace effort and the wider U.S. policy-making system in the Israel-Palestine arena, with particular emphasis on the disconnect between the situation on the ground and the process led by Washington. The critique has special resonance in light of the emerging new thinking in the administration fueled by the military high command's unhappiness (expressed by CENTCOM commander General David Petraeus and Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Admiral Michael Mullen) with the State Department's handling of Middle East diplomacy, especially with regard to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, on the grounds that diplomatic failures are having a negative impact on U.S. operations elsewhere in the region. For most JPS readers, the report has additional interest as an insider's view of the U.S. security presence in the Israel-Palestine arena. It also reflects a military approach that is often referenced but largely absent in public discourse and academic writings. The author, in addition to his tours of duty and peacekeeping missions in various Middle Eastern countries, has served as advisor to two U.S. special Middle East envoys, the U.S. negotiating team with Syria, General Petraeus, Lieutenant General Keith Dayton, Vice President Dick Cheney, and, more generally, to CENTCOM, the Department of Defense, and the Joint Chiefs of Staff, among others. In retirement, he has worked with CENTCOM as a key primary subject matter expert in the development of analyses and solutions for its area of responsibility, leads predeployment briefings for army units heading to Iraq, and travels frequently to Iraq and elsewhere in the region as an independent consultant. He is currently in Afghanistan with the CENTCOM commander's Afghanistan-Pakistan Center of Excellence. The report, made available to JPS, is being published with the author's permission.
Political Geography:: Middle East and Israel

324. Sand: The Invention of the Jewish People

Author:: Adam Sutcliffe
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The Invention of the Jewish People, by Shlomo Sand (translated from the Hebrew by Yael Lotan). London and New York: Verso, 2009. xi + 313 pages. Index to p. 334. $34.95 cloth. Adam Sutcliffe, senior lecturer in European history at King's College London, is the author of Judaism and Enlightenment (Cambridge University Press, 2003).
Topic:: History
Political Geography:: New York, Europe, and London

325. Sand: The Invention of the Jewish People

Author:: Adam Sutcliffe
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The Invention of the Jewish People, by Shlomo Sand (translated from the Hebrew by Yael Lotan). London and New York: Verso, 2009. xi + 313 pages. Index to p. 334. $34.95 cloth. Adam Sutcliffe, senior lecturer in European history at King's College London, is the author of Judaism and Enlightenment (Cambridge University Press, 2003).
Political Geography:: New York and London

326. Pappe: The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine

Author:: Ephraim Nimni
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine, by Ilan Pappé. Oxford: Oneworld, 2007. 320 pages. $27.50 cloth; $14.95 paper. Ephraim Nimni is a reader on nationalism and ethnic conflict resolution at the School of Politics, International Studies and Philosophy, Queen's University, Belfast.
Topic:: Nationalism
Political Geography:: Palestine

327. Sufian: Healing the Land and the Nation: Malaria and the Zionist Project in Palestine, 1920-1947

Author:: Philippe Bourmaud
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Healing the Land and the Nation: Malaria and the Zionist Project in Palestine, 1920–1947, by Sandra M. Sufian. Chicago and London: The University of Chicago Press, 2007. xx + 348 pages. Bibliography to p. 372. Index to p. 385. $40.00 cloth. Philippe Bourmaud is a professor of modern and contemporary history at Lyon 3 University, France, and a fellow at the Laboratoire de Recherche Historique Rhône-Alpes (Lyon).
Topic:: Development and Governance
Political Geography:: Palestine and Arabia

328. Mayer and Mourad: Jerusalem: Idea and Reality

Author:: Wendy Pullan
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Jerusalem: Idea and Reality, edited by Tamar Mayer and Suleiman A. Mourad. London and New York: Routledge, 2008. xv + 320 pages. Index to p. 332. 37 figures. n.p. Wendy Pullan, senior lecturer in architecture and urbanism at the University of Cambridge and fellow of Clare College, is the director of the research project Conflict in Cities and the Contested State
Political Geography:: New York and Jerusalem

329. Lundquist: The Temple of Jerusalem: Past, Present, and Future

Author:: Mick Dumper
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The Temple of Jerusalem: Past, Present, and Future, by John M. Lundquist. London and Westport, CT: Praeger, 2008. xviii + 231 pages. Notes to p. 264. Bibliography to p. 286. Index to p. 298. $49.95 cloth. Mick Dumper is professor of Middle East politics at Exeter University. He is the author of The Future of the Palestinian Refugees: Towards Equity and Peace (Lynne Rienner, 2007) and The Politics of Sacred Space: The Old City of Jerusalem and the Middle East Conflict (Lynne Rienner, 2001).
Topic:: Politics
Political Geography:: Middle East, London, Palestine, and Jerusalem

330. Naguib: Women, Water and Memory: Recasting Lives in Palestine

Author:: Isabelle Humphries
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Women, Water and Memory: Recasting Lives in Palestine, by Nefissa Naguib. Leiden and Boston: Brill, 2009. xvi +162 pages. Bibliography to p. 167. Index to p. 173. $87.00 paper. Isabelle Humphries has conducted doctoral research on the politics of memory among Palestinian refugees in the Galilee and coauthored a chapter on gendered Nakba memory with Laleh Khalili in Ahmad Sa'di and Lila Abu-Lughod (eds.), Nakba: Palestine, 1948, and the Claims of Memory (Columbia University Press, 2007).
Political Geography:: Israel and Palestine

331. Hovsepian: Palestinian State Formation: Education and the Construction of National Identity

Author:: Betty S. Anderson
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Palestinian State Formation: Education and the Construction of National Identity, by Nubar Hovsepian. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2008. x + 188 pages. Notes to p. 222. Appendices to p. 226. Bibliography to p. 254. Index to p. 269. $52.99 cloth. Betty S. Anderson, associate professor of Middle East history at Boston University, is the author of Nationalist Voices in Jordan: The Street and the State (University of Texas Press, 2005) and Proselytizing and Protest: A History of the American University of Beirut (AUB) (University of Texas Press, 2011).
Topic:: Education
Political Geography:: America, Middle East, and Palestine

332. Nashif: Palestinian Political Prisoners: Identity and Community

Author:: Elia Zureik
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Palestinian Political Prisoners: Identity and Community, by Esmail Nashif. London and New York: Routledge, 2008. Routledge Studies on the Arab-Israeli Conflict. xi + 207. Notes to p. 217. Bibliography to p. 225. Index to p. 232. $120 cloth. Elia Zureik is professor emeritus of sociology at Queen's University in Ontario, Canada.
Political Geography:: New York, Israel, Palestine, and Arabia

333. Rahman: Literary Disinheritance: The Writing of Home in the Work of Mahmoud Darwish and Assia Djebar

Author:: Hosam Aboul-Ela
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Literary Disinheritance: The Writing of Home in the Work of Mahmoud Darwish and Assia Djebar, by Najat Rahman. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2008. xxiii + 112 pages. Bibliography to p. 128. Appendices to p. 142. Index to p. 146. $65 cloth. Hosam Aboul-Ela, associate professor of English at the University of Houston, is the author of Other South: Faulkner, Coloniality, and the Mariátegui Tradition (University of Pittsburgh Press, 2007) and the translator of Stealth by Sonallah Ibrahim (Aflame Books, 2010).

334. Arab Views (cartoons from al-Hayat)

Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This section aims to give readers a glimpse of how the Arab world views current events that affect Palestinians and the Arab-Israeli conflict by presenting a selection of cartoons from al-Hayat, the most widely distributed mainstream daily in the Arab world. JPS is grateful to al-Hayat for permission to reprint its material.
Political Geography:: Israel, Palestine, and Arabia

335. Selections from the Press

Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This section includes articles and news items, mainly from Israeli but also from international press sources, that provide insightful or illuminating perspectives on events, developments, or trends in Israel and the occupied territories not readily available in the mainstream U.S. media.
Political Geography:: United States

336. Photos from the Quarter

Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This small sample of photos, selected from hundreds viewed by JPS, aims to convey a sense of the situation on the ground in the occupied territories during the quarter.

337. Quarterly Update on Conflict and Diplomacy : 16 November 2009 - 15 February 2010

Author:: Michele K. Esposito
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The Quarterly Update is a summary of bilateral, multilateral, regional, and international events affecting the Palestinians and the future of the peace process. More than 100 print, wire, television, and online sources providing U.S., Israeli, Arab, and international independent and government coverage of unfolding events are surveyed to compile the Quarterly Update. The most relevant sources are cited in JPS's Chronology section, which tracks events day by day.
Topic:: Government
Political Geography:: Japan, Israel, and Arabia

338. Settlement Monitor

Author:: Geoffrey Aronson
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This section covers items—reprinted articles, statistics, and maps—pertaining to Israeli settlement activities in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights. Unless otherwise stated, the items have been written by Geoffrey Aronson for this section or drawn from material written by him for Report on Israeli Settlement in the Occupied Territories (hereinafter Settlement Report), a Washington-based bimonthly newsletter published by the Foundation for Middle East Peace. JPS is grateful to the foundation for permission to draw on its material.
Political Geography:: Washington, Middle East, Israel, and Gaza

339. Congressional Monitor : 111th Congress: January - December 2009

Author:: Paul James Costic
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Published each spring, the Congressional Monitor provides summaries of all relevant bills and resolutions (joint, concurrent, and simple) introduced during the previous session of Congress that mention, even briefly, Palestine, Israel, or the broader Arab-Israeli conflict. It is part of a wider project of the Institute for Palestine Studies that includes the Congressional Monitor Database available at CongressionalMonitor.org. The database contains all relevant legislation from the 107th Congress through the first session of the 111th Congress (2001–2009) and will be updated on an ongoing basis to include legislation prior to 2001 and after 2009. You'll also find an in-depth set of FAQs which provide a guide to the database, how to use it, and the legislative process. The Monitor helps to identify major themes of legislation related to the Palestine issue as well as initiators of specific legislation, their priorities, the range of their concerns, and their attitudes toward the regional actors. Material in this compilation is drawn from www.thomas.loc.gov, where readers can also find a detailed primer on the legislative process entitled “How Our Laws Are Made.”
Political Geography:: Israel and Arabia

340. Chronology : 16 November 2009 - 15 February 2010

Author:: Michele K. Esposito
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This section is part of a chronology begun in JPS 13, no. 3 (Spring 1984). Chronology dates reflect Eastern Standard Time (EST). For a more comprehensive overview of events related to the al-Aqsa intifada and of regional and international developments related to the peace process, see the Quarterly Update on Conflict and Diplomacy in this issue. 16 NOVEMBER As the quarter opens, Israel's siege of Gaza continues, with Israel barring all exports, all but limited humanitarian imports, and most cross-border transit by individuals (with very limited exceptions for extreme medical cases, VIPs, and international NGO workers). Violence in the West Bank is low and restrictions on Palestinian movement between major population centers have eased noticeably. Israeli-Palestinian peace talks are on hold as Palestinian Authority (PA) Pres. Mahmud Abbas refuses to resume negotiations until Israel implements a comprehensive settlement freeze (which Israel rejects).Today in Gaza, 4 Palestinians are injured when a smuggling tunnel under the Rafah border collapses. In the West Bank, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Tubas, in Bayt Fajjar nr. Bethlehem, and in Qalandia refugee camp (r.c.) nr. Ramallah. Of note, 6 IDF soldiers refuse orders to dismantle structures at an unauthorized settlement outpost; they are relieved of duty pending a court-martial hearing. (NYT 11/17; OCHA, WP 11/18; PCHR 11/19) 17 NOVEMBER The Israeli Interior Min. approves construction of 900 new housing units in Gilo settlement in East Jerusalem, precipitating sharp criticism from the White House not only for the Gilo project but for “the continued pattern of evictions and demolitions of Palestinian homes” in Jerusalem; UN Secy.-Gen. Ban Ki-moon “deplores” the decision. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem, Hebron (evicting 1 Palestinian family from their home, occupying it as an observation post), Jericho, Nablus. In the Jerusalem environs, Israeli forces demolish 2 Palestinian homes (1 in Wadi Qaddum, housing 30 Palestinians; 1 in Bayt Hanina, displacing 11 Palestinians). (IFM, NYT, OCHA, PLONAD, WP, WT 11/18; PCHR 11/19) 18 NOVEMBER New York State assemblyman Dov Hikind leads a delegation of 50 Jewish Americans to lay the cornerstone of a new settlement housing project (Nof Zion) in the Palestinian neighborhood of Jabal Mukabir in East Jerusalem (see Quarterly Update for details). Meanwhile, the IDF demolishes a Palestinian home and store in Issawiyya (14 residents) on the outskirts of Jerusalem, 4 Palestinian structures in other Arab areas of East Jerusalem, including Silwan. In the West Bank, the IDF searches greenhouses nr. Jenin, looking for unlicensed wells; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Tulkarm and nr. Jenin. Also in East Jerusalem, an Israeli youth stabs, wounds a Palestinian laborer in Ramat Eshkol settlement. The IDF also makes 2 incursions into s. Gaza nr. Abasan and Khuza to bulldoze land along the border fence, clearing lines of sight. Late in the day, unidentified Palestinians fire a rocket into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. In response, the IDF makes air strikes on 2 smuggling tunnels along the Rafah border (injuring 1 Palestinian) and on a Hamas training site in Khan Yunis (destroying 2 structures). (NYT, XIN 11/19; PCHR 11/25; JPI 11/27) 19 NOVEMBER In the West Bank, the IDF stages synchronized late-night raids on the homes of 5 PA intelligence officers in villages nr. Nablus and Salfit, detaining the men (including the PA's Salfit regional intelligence cmdr. Lt. Col. Muhammad `Abd al-Hamid Bani Fadil), marking Israel's first arrest of senior PA security officials in 3 yrs.; the IDF also relays to the PA a request to turn over a 6th intelligence officer, but the PA does not comply; the Israeli DMin. confirms the arrests but refuses to comment, with Palestinian security sources speculating (YA 11/20) that Israel was pressuring the PA to back off investigation of a suspected collaborator; all 5 are released on 11/20 after talks between Israel and the PA. The IDF also stages synchronized late-night house searches in 3 villages w. of Jenin, making no arrests. IDF undercover units traveling in a car with Palestinian license plates enter Bil`in village, arrest a Palestinian on an Israeli wanted list. (YA 11/20; OCHA, PCHR 11/25) 20 NOVEMBER In the West Bank, the IDF fires rubber-coated steel bullets, stun grenades, tear gas at stone-throwing Palestinians taking part in weekly protests against the separation wall in Bil`in (10s suffer tear gas inhalation) and against Palestinian, Israeli, and international activists taking part in weekly nonviolent demonstration against the separation wall in Ni`lin (injuring 3 Palestinians); fires stun grenades and tear gas at Palestinian and international activists taking part in the weekly nonviolent demonstration against the separation wall in al-Ma`sara s. of Bethlehem (injuring 3 Palestinians, including a 9-yr.-old boy); conducts late-night arrest raids on several coffee shops nr. Qalqilya, detaining 3 PA security officers and 3 teenagers (including a 14-yr.-old boy). In Hebron, Jewish settlers fr. Ma'on in Hebron beat 4 Palestinian youths tending sheep nearby, chasing them off the land; Jewish settlers fr. Carmiel attack and vandalize a Palestinian home nearby, attempting to drive the Palestinian family off the land. (OCHA, PCHR 11/25) 21 NOVEMBER In Gaza, unidentified Palestinians fire a rocket into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. The IDF retaliates with air strikes on 2 suspected weapons factories and a smuggling tunnel on the Rafah border, injuring 8 Palestinians (2 seriously, 2 moderately, 4 lightly) and damaging another 2 factories and 4 homes nearby. Hrs. later, Hamas announces that it has secured renewed pledges from all Gaza factions to halt all rocket and mortar fire toward Israel, to preserve the stability in Gaza and prevent further Israeli retaliation, though the factions say they will respond to any IDF incursion into Gaza. (YA 11/21; HA, WT 11/22; WT 11/23; OCHA, PCHR 11/25; WJW 11/26) 22 NOVEMBER In the West Bank, the IDF makes a late-night incursion into Bayt Liqiya nr. Ramallah, patrolling the streets and firing rubber-coated steel bullets at stone-throwing youths who confront them, causing no reported injuries; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Jenin, Qalqilya. (OCHA, PCHR 11/25) 23 NOVEMBER Unidentified Palestinians fire a rocket fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. Late in the evening, the IDF carries out air strikes on smuggling tunnels on the Rafah border in retaliation, causing no reported injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Qalqilya; conducts late-night patrols inside Jenin town. Jewish settlers stone Palestinian vehicles traveling on the Nablus–Qalqilya road nr. Havat Gilad settlement. The UN reports that in the previous wk., 2 Palestinian militants were killed mishandling explosives, and 1 Palestinian was killed and 1 injured in a smuggling tunnel collapse on the Rafah border. (Jewish Telegraphic Agency 11/23; OCHA, PCHR 11/25) 24 NOVEMBER In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Salfit and nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Jenin. (OCHA, PCHR 11/25; PCHR 12/3) 25 NOVEMBER In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Qalqilya and nr. Nablus, Salfit. (PCHR 12/3; OCHA 12/9) Netanyahu declares a 10-mo. halt to all new residential housing approvals and construction in West Bank settlements, though building in East Jerusalem and work on 2,900 West Bank housing units currently under construction and any “public buildings essential for normal life” (e.g., schools, synagogues) in West Bank settlements would proceed. The U.S. welcomes this move as “significant.” PA PM Salam Fayyad says that the offer is not enough, the PA insists on a total settlement freeze. (IFM 11/25; NYT, WP, WT 11/26)
Topic:: Diplomacy
Political Geography:: United States, Israel, Palestine, and Gaza

341. Bibliography of Periodical Literature : Spring 2010

Author:: Norbert Scholz
Publication Date:: 03-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This section lists articles and reviews of books relevant to Palestine and the Arab-Israeli conflict. Entries are classified under the following headings: Reference and General; History (through 1948) and Geography; Palestinian Politics and Society; Jerusalem; Israeli Politics, Society, and Zionism; Arab and Middle Eastern Politics; International Relations; Law; Military; Economy, Society, and Education; Literature, Arts, and Culture; Book Reviews; and Reports Received. Reference and General `Abd al-Hay, Hana S. “Parliamentary Quotas for Women: Between International Support and Contradictory Arab Positions” [in Arabic]. MAUS, no. 23 (Sum. 09): 47–70. Abraham, Ibrahim, and Roland Boer. “'God Doesn't Care': The Contradictions of Christian Zionism.” Religion and Theology 16, nos. 1–2 (09): 90–110. Davis, Nancy J., and Robert V. Robinson. “Overcoming Movement Obstacles by the Religious Orthodoxy: The Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, Shas in Israel, Comunione e Liberazione in Italy and the Salvation Army in the United States.” American Journal of Sociology 114, no. 5 (Mar. 09): 1302–49. Hassan, Riaz. “Interrupting a History of Tolerance: Anti-Semitism and the Arabs.” Asian Journal of Social Science 37, no. 3 (09): 453–62. Ouardani, Mohamed. “La religion peut-elle tout expliquer? L'islam comme modèle explicatif des sociétés musulmanes.” CM, no. 70 (Sum. 09): 147–64. Salem, Salah. “The Renovation of Arab Socialist Thought” [in Arabic]. ShA, no. 140 (Win. 09): 118–32. Al-Sayyadi, Mokhles. “Contemporary Islamic Movements” [in Arabic]. MA 32, no. 369 (Nov. 09): 7–27. History (through 1948) and Geography Abisaab, Malek. “Shiite Peasants and a New Nation in Colonial Lebanon: The Intifada of Bint Jubayl, 1936.” CSSAME 29, no. 3 (09): 483–501. Avci, Yasemin. “The Application of Tanzimat in the Desert: The Bedouins and the Creation of a New Town in Southern Palestine (1860–1914).” MES 45, no. 6 (Nov. 09): 969–83. Chazan, Meir. “Mapai and the Arab-Jewish Conflict, 1936–1939.” ISF 24, no. 2 (Win. 09): 28–51. Hirsch, Dafna. “'We are Here to Bring the West, Not Only to Ourselves': Zionist Occidentalism and The Discourse of Hygiene in Mandate Palestine.” IJMES 41, no. 4 (Nov. 09): 577–94. Holmila, Antero. “The Holocaust and the Birth of Israel in British, Swedish and Finnish Press Discourse, 1947–1948.” European Review of History 16, no. 2 (Apr. 09): 183–200. Hughes, Matthew. “From Law and Order to Pacification: Britain's Suppression of the Arab Revolt in Palestine, 1936–39.” JPS 39, no. 2 (Win. 2010): 6–22. Kabalo, Paula. “Challenging Disempowerment in 1948: The Role of the Jewish Third Sector during the Israeli War of Independence.” ISF 24, no. 2 (Win. 09): 3–27. ———. “The Historical Dimension: Jewish Associations in Palestine and Israel 1880s–1950s.” Journal of Civil Society 5, no. 1 (Jun. 09): 1–19. Kushner, David. “Mussaver Çöl: An Ottoman Magazine in Beersheba toward the End of World War I” [in Hebrew]. Cathedra, no. 132 (Jun. 09): 131–48. Nashif, Taysir. “Educational Background and Elite Composition: Jewish Political Leadership during the British Mandate.” ISF 24, no. 2 (Win. 09): 67–81. Sheffy, Yigal. “Chemical Warfare and the Palestine Campaign, 1916–1918.” Journal of Military History 73, no. 3 (Jul. 09): 803–44. ———. “The Jaffa–Jerusalem Railway Line, the Sejed Station, and British Military Intelligence” [in Hebrew]. Cathedra, no. 131 (Mar. 09): 163–69. Sinanoglu, Penny. “British Plans for the Partition of Palestine, 1929–1938.” Historical Journal 52, no. 1 (Mar. 09): 131–52. Palestinian Politics and Society Abdallah, Hmaidi. “The Prospect of the Intra-Palestinian Dialogue in Egypt” [in Arabic]. Dirasat Bahith 7, no. 27 (Sum. 09): 113–26. Abdallah, Taisir. “Prevalence and Predictors of Burnout among Palestinian Social Workers.” International Social Work 52, no. 2 (Mar. 09): 223–33. Abu Fakhr, Sakr, ed. “Fatah and the Palestine Liberation Organization” [in Arabic]. MDF, no. 79 (Sum. 09): 100–7. Aruri, Naseer, and Hani Fares, eds. “The Boston Declaration on the One State” [in Arabic]. MDF, no. 79 (Sum. 09): 124–26. Boulby, Marion. “On Shifting Boundaries: Islamist Women in Palestinian Politics.” BCBRL 4, no. 1 (Nov. 09): 31–32. Braverman, Irus. “Uprooting Identities: The Regulation of Olive Trees in the Occupied West Bank.” Political and Legal Anthropology Review 32, no. 2 (Nov. 09): 237–54. Brom, Shlomo, Giora Eiland, and Oded Eran. “Partial Agreements with the Palestinians.” Strategic Assessment 12, no. 3 (Nov. 09): 67–86. Clarno, Andy. “Or Does It Explode? Collecting Shells in Gaza.” Social Psychology 72, no. 2 (Jun. 09): 95–98. Dana, Seif. “Islamic Resistance in Palestine: Hamas, the Gaza War and the Future of Political Islam.” HLS 8, no. 2 (Nov. 09): 211–28. Fayyad, Salam (interview). “Salam Fayyad Presents his Project of State-Building” [in Arabic]. MDF, no. 79 (Sum. 09): 5–20. Harker, Christopher. “Spacing Palestine through the Home.” Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers 34, no. 3 (Jul. 09): 320–32. Hawatmeh, Nayef (interview). “Nayef Hawatmeh: A Comprehensive Interview” [in Arabic]. Dirasat Bahith 7, no. 27 (Sum. 09): 9–32. Ishtiya, Imad, Husni Awad, and Fakhri Dwaykat. “The Reasons behind Fatah's Decline: A Field Study” [in Arabic]. MDF, no. 79 (Sum. 09): 27–38. Jokman, Georges. “The Future of Fatah and the Two-State Solution: Power or Resistance” [in Arabic]. MDF, no. 79 (Sum. 09): 21–26. Kayyali, Majed. “The Impasse of Efforts for an Internal Palestinian Reconciliation” [in Arabic]. ShA, no. 39 (Fall 09): 14–24. Klein, Menachem. “Against the Consensus: Oppositionist Voices in Hamas.” MES 45, no. 6 (Nov. 09): 881–92. Kuruvilla, Samuel. “The Invention of History: A Century of Interplay between Theology and Politics in Palestine, Report on the International Centre of Bethlehem Conference, 23–29 August 2009.” HLS 8, no. 2 (Nov. 09): 235–38. Kurz, Anat. “The Sixth Fatah Convention: Formal Changes Only.” Strategic Assessment 12, no. 3 (Nov. 09): 51–65. Legrain, Jean-François. “Hamas et Fatah dans leur rivalité médiatique.” CM, no. 69 (Spr. 09): 75–86. Merari, Ariel, Jonathan Fighel, Boaz Ganor, et al. “Making Palestinian 'Martyrdom Operations'/'Suicide Attacks': Interviews with Would-Be Perpetrators and Organizers.” TPV 22, no. 1 (Jan. 10): 102–19. Al-Rimmawi, Hussein. “Spatial Changes in Palestine: From Colonial Project to an Apartheid System.” African and Asian Studies 8, no. 4 (09): 375–412. Salman, Talal. “In Memory of Shafiq al-Hout” [in Arabic]. MDF, no. 79 (Sum. 09): 96–99. Shikaki, Khalid. “Fatah Resurrected.” The National Interest, 104 (Nov./Dec. 09), http://www.nationalinterest.org/Article.aspx?id=22326. Taha, al-Moutawakkel. “Gaza: The War and the Culture” [in Arabic]. Dirasat Bahith 7, no. 27 (Sum. 09): 67–70. Tawil-Souri, Helga. “New Palestinian Centers: An Ethnography of the 'Checkpoint Economy'.” International Journal of Cultural Studies 12, no. 3 (May 09): 217–35. JERUSALEM Al-`Azaar, Muhammad K. “Jerusalem: 2009 Capital of Arab Culture” [in Arabic]. ShA, no. 140 (Win. 09): 104–16. Dumper, Michael. “'Two State Plus': Jerusalem and the Binationalism Debate.” JQ, no. 39 (Fall 09): 6–15. Dumper, Michael, and Craig Larkin. “UNESCO and Jerusalem: Constraints, Challenges and Opportunities.” JQ, no. 39 (Fall 09): 16–28. Frenkel, Yehoshua. “Praises of Jerusalem and Damascus” [in Hebrew]. Cathedra, no. 131 (Mar. 09): 142–46. Houk, Marian. “A New Convergence? European and American Positions on Jerusalem.” JQ, no. 38 (Fall 09): 88–96. Ju`ba, Nazmi. “Jerusalem: Between Land Settlements and Excavations” [in Arabic]. MDF, no. 79 (Sum. 09): 39–54. Khamaisi, Rassem. “Israel's Policy in Old Jerusalem: The Creeping Domination and Urbanization” [in Arabic]. Idafat, no. 8 (Fall 09): 121–44. Makhoul, Amir. “The Status of Jerusalem in the Palestinian Cause” [in Arabic]. ShA, no. 140 (Win. 09): 92–103. Pullan, Wendy. “The Space of Contested Jerusalem.” JQ, no. 39 (Fall 09): 39–50.
Topic:: Economics and Politics
Political Geography:: America, Israel, Palestine, and Arabia

342. Truman the Politician and the Establishment of Israel

Author:: Lawrence Davidson
Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Harry S. Truman was a temperamental and politically ambitious man. Both his sensitivities and ambition influenced his actions during his presidency. This was particularly the case when it came to Palestine because there existed a strong domestic Zionist lobby that played to Truman's wants and needs in order to influence his decision making. This article examines that process of policy formulation and shows how personality played into the president's behavior in ways that allowed the Zionist lobby to accomplish its ends. Though Truman's actions can be seen as a product of his personal sensitivities, his prioritizing of domestic political ambitions with regard to policy on Palestine set a harmful precedent for the future.
Political Geography:: Israel

343. Lawrence Davidson on American Presidents and Israel

Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: No abstract is available.
Political Geography:: America and Israel

344. From the Editor

Author:: Rashid I. Khalidi
Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The role of U.S. presidents in making policy on Palestine is an insufficiently studied topic. Many believe that if the policy of a given administration is particularly favorable to Israel, this is entirely due to the president's predilections. Disappointment with the policies of the Obama administration after the high hopes raised by his initial declarations is based on this belief. Others are convinced that the Israel lobby is and has always been all powerful, imposing its views on different administrations. Neither of these views is correct. There is no question that a president's personal attitude is important, as could be seen during the Eisenhower and other administrations when U.S. policy showed a degree of balance between Israel and the Arabs. At the same time, the Israel lobby has grown much more powerful, especially since the 1980s and especially in Congress, where it initially focused its efforts and where it has virtually unchallenged influence.
Political Geography:: United States and Israel

345. The Fall of Acre in the 1948 Palestine War

Author:: Mustafa Abbasi
Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: In studies of the 1948 war, little attention has been paid to the swift fall of one of Palestine's most storied cities, the walled and fortified seaport of Acre. This article, based on archival sources, focuses on the six months leading up to the city's conquest on 17 May 1948. Describing in detail the preparations of the city's defense, the various military and political forces involved, and the dissensions and rivalries among them, the article goes on to trace the tightening siege and mounting harassment of the city and the growing despair of its residents, the city's place in Haganah strategy, and the actual battle. Of particular interest is the role of the Druze Regiment stationed nearby. Most important, the author provides a clear understanding of why events unfolded as they did. ACRE IS ONE OF THE MOST FAMOUS CITIES in the history of Palestine, its name associated with walls and fortifications that have withstood the attacks of powerful armies. In 1799, Napoleon and his army laid siege to the town but despite desperate attempts were forced to withdraw. In 1832, Ibrahim Pasha and the Egyptian army laid siege to Acre for a full six months before they could overcome the city's fierce resistance. Yet on 17 May 1948, three days after the establishment of the State of Israel, this city of walls and fortifications fell to the Haganah forces in a military operation that met with relatively little resistance. ACRE BEFORE THE WAR After suffering decline and stagnation under Egyptian rule (1832–40), Acre began a new chapter with its return to Ottoman rule, entering a process of slow recovery that accelerated during the reforms of the late Ottoman period and continued under the British Mandate. This was reflected in the town's demographic growth as recorded in the Mandate's three censuses: from 6,420 in the 1922 census to 8,165 in the 1931 census. In the 1946 census, the population stood at 13,560, of which 10,930 were Muslim, 2,490 were Christian, 90 were from other denominations, and 50 were Jews. In other words, Acre was almost totally Arab. The city of Acre was the administrative, political, and economic center of a large district of the same name that contained 63 villages in 1922 and a total population of 55,970 in 1944. The city was governed by families well known and established at least since late Ottoman times. Prominent among these were the Abu al-Huda, Sa`di, Shuqayri, and Khalifa families. Tawfiq Bey Abu al-Huda, a well-known city leader who had once been Acre's mayor, after 1948 became prime minister of Jordan. Shaykh As`ad al-Shuqayri, a senior religious figure, was a prominent local and national leader until his death in 1940. Of the Sa`di family, the most noteworthy was `Abd al-Fatah al-Sa`di, a dignitary who served as Acre's mayor until his death in 1927. A prominent member of the Khalifa family was Husni Khalifa, Acre's last Arab mayor and, as such, the one who had to cope with the catastrophe that befell the city in 1948. When clashes began to break out in Palestine following the 29 November 1947 passage of the UN partition plan, which divided Palestine into a Jewish state and an Arab state, the fact that Acre was included in the Arab state gave its residents confidence during the following months. The hopes of the Galilee's inhabitants also hung on the city, regarded as the region's stronghold. The confidence that Acre would somehow be able to withstand the military forces of the Yishuv, a feeling that owed much to the town's glorious past, was soon revealed to be ill-founded. The conquest of Acre, which, after Jaffa, was the first major town outside the territory allotted to the Jewish state to fall to the Haganah forces, was an important event. Despite this, it has not yet been the subject of any in-depth or comprehensive research. Most sources—both Israeli and Palestinian —deal with the subject at the macro level and in the wider context of the 1948 war. This study is based primarily on archival material from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), the Haganah, and State of Israel archives, which contain extensive Hebrew and Arabic material that can shed new light on the subject. ORGANIZING FOR ACRE'S DEFENSE AND FAILED ATTEMPTS AT DIALOGUE The vote on the UN partition plan had been awaited by the Palestinian Arabs with dread, as it was well known that if the resolution passed, the country would be plunged into a full-blown crisis. On 27 November 1947, therefore, two days before the vote, the Arab Higher Committee (AHC), the highest political authority of the Arabs of Palestine, decreed the establishment of national committees in all the Arab cities and villages throughout the country. The AHC instructed the heads of public authorities to act immediately to establish these committees, even transmitting clear instructions regarding their composition, fields of operation, and functions. In Acre, as in other Palestinian towns, the task of establishing national committees was complicated by local power struggles that often hinged on political alignments, notably in relation to Haj Amin al-Husayni, the Mufti of Jerusalem and head of the AHC, and persons or groups opposed to him. From the beginning of the Mandate, Acre's leadership had been identified with the Palestinian opposition, and relations between the city's leaders (particularly Shaykh As`ad al-Shuqayri) and Haj Amin were habitually tense. The nearly month-long struggle over the composition of the Acre national committee between the oppositional camp led by the mayor, Husni Khalifa, and certain local and external forces aligned with Haj Amin was a testament to these tense relations.
Topic:: War
Political Geography:: Palestine

346. Jewels of the Occupation: Gold Wedding Jewelry in the West Bank

Author:: Elena N. Hogan
Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This article examines the social role and broader cultural meanings of gold jewelry used in Muslim weddings in the West Bank—“marriage jewelry” that by right belongs exclusively to the woman and whose socio-symbolic value extends far beyond its market value. Through interviews with muftis, gold dealers, and especially Palestinian women, the article explores the unwritten “rules” governing marriage jewelry's exchange, and how these rules are affected in a context of occupation and economic hardship. In particular, the author discusses the relatively new phenomenon of imitation (or “virtual”) gold jewelry for public display in wedding rites, exploring the new rules growing up around it and speculating on its long-term impact on entrenched traditions. “[The] purchase of [gold] jewelry, from the wedding ring to all the other gold accessories, is viewed as the true expression [and] official announcement of a new marriage, no less important than the marriage certificate itself,” writes Palestinian economist Aziz al-Assa. Al-Assa's confirmation of the pivotal role played by gold jewelry in Muslim Palestinian weddings should come as no surprise: gold jewelry is widely used in wedding rites from the Middle East to Central and South Asia. Likewise among West Bank Muslims, gold jewelry is publicly given to the bride by the groom and both sides of the family during the wedding. Gold jewelry, then, is closely associated with the marriage alliance and the gift, and signals an essential change in a person's civil status in Muslim Palestinian culture. This has continued to be the case despite widespread poverty and political upheaval. At the time of my fieldwork, over half the Palestinian population of the occupied West Bank was living under the poverty line. Exacerbating the economic hardships produced by closures and occupation policies, international sanctions had been imposed on the Palestinian Authority (PA) following Hamas's parliamentary victory in January 2006. With international aid frozen and Israel refusing to hand over Palestinian tax money to the PA, thousands of government employees including teachers and health professionals went unpaid for many months, resulting in unprecedented levels of economic hardship that afflicted most layers of Palestinian society. Yet despite these grave circumstances, gold jewelry stores were still in business and significant amounts of gold jewelry continued to circulate and be worn by Palestinian women. Given gold jewelry's fundamental role in cementing marriage alliances, it stands to reason that the true value of these jewels is not simply their intrinsic value measurable in monetary terms but rather reflects their ability to fulfill multiple functions on a symbolic level. Many of gold jewelry's more important functions are thus fundamentally anthropological. For this reason, a brief look at some key anthropological concepts regarding Palestinian gold jewelry is useful before we examine this commodity's most salient exchange patterns. GOLD JEWELRY AS COMMODITY The first consideration to be made about Palestinian gold jewelry is that it can be defined as a commodity in the sense of Arjun Appadurai, who, starting from the alternative economic theories of Georg Simmel, holds that commodities are “economic objects” whose economic value is never intrinsic but wholly dependent on what value a subject attributes to them. A commodity is thus a “thoroughly socialized thing” and remains a commodity only as long as its possibilities for exchange (past, present, or future) are considered its socially relevant feature. The social value of gold jewelry to Palestinians, then, is so great that even at times of acute economic crisis this jewelry continues to be exchanged. From the Palestinians I interviewed, the following life cycle of gold jewelry can be deduced: Its sale to a client (generally male) as a gift for a woman (usually a bride) Its use by women as ornament during weddings and sometimes after giving birth Its eventual resale to the jewelry store by the female owner (possibly after other ownership transfers between women) Its subsequent resale by the jeweler to the wholesaler The industrial production of new jewels from the gold obtained by melting down the initial jewels The sale of these new jewels back to the jeweler who once again initiates the exchange cycle This sequence makes it clear that gold jewelry in Palestinian society fits categorization as a “quintessential commodity,” that is, gold jewelry is nearly always in the commodity state. If the life cycle of a piece of gold jewelry technically ends when it is melted down at the factory, the gold that it contained immediately reenters circulation in the form of other jewels. Mary Douglas and Baron Isherwood have illustrated how commodities provide “marking services” within coherent information systems and how “[t]he cultural aspect of necessities is revealed as their service in low-esteem, high-frequency events, while luxuries tend to serve essentially for low-frequency events that are highly esteemed.” Marriage alliances are highly esteemed low-frequency events that give concrete form to Palestinian social structure and for which gold jewelry, as a luxury item, provides a fundamental marking service.
Political Geography:: South Asia, Middle East, and Palestine

347. Under a Cloud of Uncertainty: AIPAC's 2010 Policy Conference, 21--23 March

Author:: Cléa Thouin
Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: ON THE SECOND DAY of the 2010 American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) annual policy conference, Eric Cantor, the Republican Whip for the 111th U.S. Congress, declared, “We gather today under a dark cloud of uncertainty.” Cantor may have been referring to most participants' favorite subject, the Iranian “nuclear threat,” but his statement proved an apt description of the overall atmosphere at this year's conference. The conference came in the midst of unusually fraught public tensions between the United States and Israel over the announcement two weeks earlier of new settlement construction in East Jerusalem. The dispute over an issue as important to the United States as the peace process, against the background of recently revealed statements by the U.S. military high command that the nonresolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was negatively impacting U.S. security and military operations elsewhere in the world, directly challenged AIPAC's fundamental founding premise: the identity of U.S. and Israeli interests. As a result, the conference was colored by a palpable level of uncertainty about the way forward for the pro-Israel community in the United States. TELLING THE STORY AIPAC's fifty-first annual conference, which took place from 21 to 23 March in the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C., was billed as the largest ever, with 7,500 delegates. The size itself posed challenges. To accommodate such numbers, the plenary sessions were held in a 780-foot-long conference hall—more than twice the size of a U.S. football field. This meant that despite the extravagant 500-foot split screen, the crowd on one side of the hall could not see what was happening at ground level on the other side, sometimes resulting in serious confusion. On more than one occasion, for example, half the audience, spontaneously joining with commotion on the other side of the hall without being able to see the source, unwittingly applauded pro-Palestinian activists protesting speeches, particularly by Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Middle East Quartet envoy (and former British prime minister) Tony Blair. These were two of the main speakers, the other most highly anticipated speaker at this year's conference being U.S. secretary of state Hillary Clinton. Besides four plenary sessions (and a gala dinner) that featured the main speakers, the program consisted of approximately one hundred “breakout sessions”—focused panels, university-type seminars, and advocacy training sessions led by scholars, professionals, or lobbyists. These took place concurrently before or after the plenary sessions, and most were repeated more than once in the course of the conference (sometimes with different speakers). There were also luncheons and dinners with distinguished guests, most of which (as well as some panels) were “by invitation only,” restricted to select AIPAC members. Only one plenary session was held on the last day of the conference, as most of the morning was dedicated to training workshops in preparation for AIPAC's traditional day of lobbying on Capitol Hill. These workshops were organized by region, with participants attending lobbying sessions for their specific region so as to receive targeted training on their congressional representatives. The overall conference theme, “Israel: Tell the Story,” represented AIPAC's effort to redirect the increasingly negative public narrative on Israel that has emerged since Israel's winter 2008–2009 assault on Gaza. This was part of a broader attempt to shift from a defensive campaign aimed at refuting criticism of Israel to an offensive campaign focused on advancing a positive picture of Israel, that of “an innovator, a Jewish homeland, an open society, a light unto the nations.” AIPAC executive director Howard Kohr outlined in broad strokes the new strategy, expressly calling on his audience to shed their “defensive mentality,” which he argued focused “all too often on the slights Israel faces,” and instead “tell the story of Israel's hand extended in peace . . . Israel's example of freedom and democracy.” The results of the conference fell short of this goal. The only successful “storytelling” took place at the opening plenary session titled “Innovation Nation,” which framed Israel's modern technological entrepreneurship as a continuation of early Zionist settlers' alleged ability to “make the desert bloom,” and in a video (one of many screened on the conference hall's mega screen) that depicted the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) as a humanitarian vanguard without ever hinting at the possibility of improper conduct during Operation Cast Lead (OCL). Only four “breakout” panels addressed the Israel-as-innovation-nation theme—two on Israel's economic and technological achievements, the other two on its military innovation. Moreover, most panels on Israel throughout the conference could be seen as “defensive,” for example, “Singled Out: Delegitimizing Israel at the United Nations,” “Mainstream to Fringe: Reality of Anti-Israel Effort in America,” or “Tough Questions: Answering Israel's Detractors.” Similarly, although a number of secondary speakers, from a Paraguayan entrepreneur to a Nigerian doctor, were tasked with “telling Israel's story” during the conference's plenary sessions, they were never the focus of the sessions at which they spoke and instead seemed to be no more than fillers before anticipated speakers like Clinton and Netanyahu. Even main speakers like Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz inevitably found themselves defending Israel's policies—whether on settlements or on the IDF's conduct during OCL—rather than actually telling the story of what Kohr called the “small miracle we know as Israel.”
Topic:: United Nations
Political Geography:: America and Israel

348. The Power of Inclusive Exclusion: Anatomy of Israeli Rule in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, edited by Adi Ophir, Michal Givoni, and Sari Hanafi. New York: Zone Books, 2009. 641 pages. $38.95 cloth.

Author:: Roger Heacock
Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This book is largely the fruit of a research effort sponsored by the Van Leer Institute in Jerusalem, involving around twenty Israeli and three Palestinian contributors (one a coeditor), and comes highly praised on the jacket by sometime Van Leer visiting professor Ann Stoler.
Political Geography:: New York and Israel

349. Impossible Peace: Israel/Palestine since 1989, by Mark LeVine. London and New York: Zed Books, 2009. xii + 182 pages. Notes to p. 208. Bibliography to p. 215. Index to p. 222. $25.95 paper; $85.95 cloth. The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: A People's War, by Beverley Milton-Edwards. London and New York: Routledge, 2009. xii + 205 pages. Chronology to p. 209. Bibliography to p. 222. Index to p. 228. $39.95 paper; $140.00 cloth.

Author:: Helena Cobban
Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Pity the poor writer who sets out to write a book about the “recent” history of the Palestine question, because this question continues to be dynamic and, like time and tides, stands still for no one. In the first sentence of Impossible Peace: Israel/Palestine since 1989, cultural historian Mark LeVine tells us, “As I began writing this book, the Israel Defense Forces had just removed the last Jewish settlers from the Gaza Strip,” placing it in September 2005. The writing evidently took some time because in later chapters LeVine refers (albeit in a less than satisfactory way) to events of 2007 and early 2008. For her part, political scientist Beverley Milton-Edwards brought her historical survey up only to 2005. Both books were published in 2009, in the aftermath of yet another landmark regarding the Palestine question: the lethal assault that Israel launched on Gaza in late 2008 and, even more significantly, the ability that Gaza's elected Hamas rulers evinced to survive that assault.
Political Geography:: New York, Israel, and London

350. Colonial Encounters among English and Palestinian Women, 1800--1948, by Nancy L. Stockdale. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 2007. xi + 196 pages. Notes to p. 220. Bibliography to p. 240. Index to p. 246. $59.95 cloth.

Author:: Ellen Fleischmann
Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Colonial Encounters among English and Palestinian Women, 1800--1948, by Nancy L. Stockdale. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 2007. xi + 196 pages. Notes to p. 220. Bibliography to p. 240. Index to p. 246. $59.95 cloth. Ellen Fleischmann, associate professor of history at the University of Dayton, is the author of The Nation and Its 'New' Women: The Palestinian Women's Movement, 1920–1948 (University of California Press, 2003).
Political Geography:: Palestine

351. Turkish Jerusalem (1516--1917): Ottoman Inscriptions from Jerusalem and Other Palestinian Cities, by Mehmet Tütüncü. Haarlem, Netherlands: SOTA/Turkestan and Azerbaijan Research Centre, 2006. 256 pages. Bibliography to p. 260. Indices to p. 265. Appendix to p. 267. 150 photographs and 3 maps. CD rom. n.p

Author:: Abdul Rahim Abu Husayn
Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Turkish Jerusalem (1516--1917): Ottoman Inscriptions from Jerusalem and Other Palestinian Cities, by Mehmet Tütüncü. Haarlem, Netherlands: SOTA/Turkestan and Azerbaijan Research Centre, 2006. 256 pages. Bibliography to p. 260. Indices to p. 265. Appendix to p. 267. 150 photographs and 3 maps. CD rom. n.p Abdul Rahim Abu Husayn is a professor in the Department of History and Archaeology at the American University of Beirut.
Political Geography:: Turkey and Jerusalem

352. The Holy Places of Jerusalem in Middle East Peace Agreements: The Conflict between Global and State Identities, by Enrico Molinaro. Portland: Sussex Academic Press, 2009. x + 139 pages. Annexes to p. 139. Notes to p. 175. References to p. 184. Index to p. 198. $37.50 paper; $99.50 cloth

Author:: George Emile Irani
Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The Holy Places of Jerusalem in Middle East Peace Agreements: The Conflict between Global and State Identities, by Enrico Molinaro. Portland: Sussex Academic Press, 2009. x + 139 pages. Annexes to p. 139. Notes to p. 175. References to p. 184. Index to p. 198. $37.50 paper; $99.50 cloth. George Emile Irani, associate professor in international relations at the American University of Kuwait, is the author of The Papacy and the Middle East: The Role of the Holy See in the Arab-Israeli Conflict: 1962– 1984 (University of Notre Dame Press, 1986). He is currently working on a book dealing with papal diplomacy in the Middle East in the last twenty years.
Political Geography:: Middle East and Jerusalem

353. The Arab Lobby and US Foreign Policy: The Two-State Solution, by Khalil Marrar. London and New York: Routledge, 2009. xii + 149 pages. Appendices to p. 164. Notes to p. 220. Bibliography to p. 254. Index to p. 269. $140.00 cloth; $39.95 paper.

Author:: Steven Salaita
Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Khalil Marrar's The Arab Lobby and US Foreign Policy: The Two-State Solution is a provocative and comprehensive monograph that surveys and analyzes the role of Arab and Arab American activist and political organizations—together comprising what Marrar calls the “pro-Arab lobby”—in the policy discourses of the Israel-Palestine conflict. Marrar is concerned in particular with the now-widespread one-state/ two-state debate and its influence on both pro-Arab and pro-Israel lobbying efforts. He asks, “[W]hy has the US shifted away from an 'Israel only' position toward the Israeli- Palestinian conflict to supporting an 'Israel and Palestine' formula for peace?” (p. 3)
Topic:: Foreign Policy
Political Geography:: New York, America, Israel, London, and Arabia

354. Mornings in Jenin: A Novel, by Susan Abulhawa. New York: Bloomsbury, 2010. xiii + 325 pages. Glossary to p. 330. References to p. 331. $15 paper.

Author:: Marcy Jane Knopf-Newman
Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Mornings in Jenin: A Novel, by Susan Abulhawa. New York: Bloomsbury, 2010. xiii + 325 pages. Glossary to p. 330. References to p. 331. $15 paper. Marcy Jane Knopf-Newman is associate professor of English at Amman Ahliyya University.
Political Geography:: New York

355. Arab Views (cartoons from al-Hayat)

Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This section aims to give readers a glimpse of how the Arab world views current events that affect Palestinians and the Arab-Israeli conflict by presenting a selection of cartoons from al-Hayat, the most widely distributed mainstream daily in the Arab world.
Political Geography:: Israel, Palestine, and Arabia

356. Selections from the Press

Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This section aims to give readers a glimpse of how the Arab world views current events that affect Palestinians and the Arab-Israeli conflict by presenting a selection of cartoons from al-Hayat, the most widely distributed mainstream daily in the Arab world. JPS is grateful to al-Hayat for permission to reprint its material.
Political Geography:: Israel, Palestine, and Arabia

357. Photos From the Quarter

Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This small sample of photos, selected from hundreds viewed by JPS, aims to convey a sense of the situation on the ground in the occupied territories during the quarter.

358. Quarterly Update on Conflict and Diplomacy-16 February–15 May 2010

Author:: Michele K. Esposito
Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The Quarterly Update is a summary of bilateral, multilateral, regional, and international events affecting the Palestinians and the future of the peace process. More than 100 print, wire, television, and online sources providing U.S., Israeli, Arab, and international independent and government coverage of unfolding events are surveyed to compile the Quarterly Update. The most relevant sources are cited in JPS's Chronology section, which tracks events day by day.
Political Geography:: United States, Israel, Palestine, and Arabia

359. Settlement Monitor

Author:: Geoffrey Aronson
Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This section covers items—reprinted articles, statistics, and maps—pertaining to Israeli settlement activities in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights. Unless otherwise stated, the items have been written by Geoffrey Aronson for this section or drawn from material written by him for Report on Israeli Settlement in the Occupied Territories (hereinafter Settlement Report), a Washington-based bimonthly newsletter published by the Foundation for Middle East Peace. JPS is grateful to the foundation for permission to draw on its material.
Political Geography:: Middle East, Israel, Jerusalem, and Gaza

360. Chronology

Author:: Michele K. Esposito
Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: 16 February–15 May 2010 This section is part 106 of a chronology begun in JPS 13, no. 3 (Spring 1984). Chronology dates reflect Eastern Standard Time (EST). For a more comprehensive overview of events related to the al-Aqsa intifada and of regional and international developments related to the peace process, see the Quarterly Update on Conflict and Diplomacy in this issue. 16 FEBRUARY As the quarter opens, Israel's siege of Gaza continues, with Israel barring all exports, all but limited humanitarian imports, and most cross-border transit by individuals (with very limited exceptions for extreme medical cases, VIPs, and international NGO workers). The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) enforces a 300-meter-deep no-go zone along the full length of the Gaza border and limits the Palestinian fishing zone off Gaza to 500–1,000 m off the immediate Bayt Lahiya and Rafah coasts, and 3 nautical miles elsewhere. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron, nr. Tubas. (PCHR 2/18) 17 FEBRUARY IDF troops on the n. Gaza border fire on Palestinians scavenging building materials fr. destroyed buildings n. of Bayt Lahiya, forcing them to flee but causing no injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF demolishes a livestock pen nr. Kiryat Arba settlement after the settlers filed a petition with the IDF asking for it to be removed; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in al-Am`ari refugee camp (r.c.) nr. al-Bireh and nr. Hebron, Jenin, Nablus. (PCHR 2/18, 2/24; OCHA 2/25) 18 FEBRUARY The IDF makes a day-long incursion into c. Gaza to level land inside the no-go zone e. of al-Maghazi and al-Musaddar, demolishing 3 Palestinian homes (displacing 13 residents), leveling 17 dunams (d.; 4 d. = 1 acre) of agricultural land, exchanging gunfire with armed Palestinians throughout the day (no injuries reported). In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in Bayt Sira village w. of Ramallah in the evening, firing rubber-coated steel bullets at stone-throwing youths who confront them, causing no injuries; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Jenin, Ramallah. (OCHA 2/18; PCHR 2/24; OCHA 2/25) 19 FEBRUARY Israeli naval vessels fire on Palestinian fishing boats off the n. Gaza coast, forcing them to return to shore. In the West Bank, the IDF fires rubber-coated steel bullets, stun grenades, tear gas at Palestinian, Israeli, and international activists (including Palestinian Authority [PA] PM Salam Fayyad, PA communications advisor Sabri Saydam, Fatah Central Comm. mbr. Nabil Shaath, PLO Exec. Comm. mbr. Taysir Khalid, Palestinian National Initiative party head Mustafa Barghouti, and the mayor of Geneva), some of whom throw stones at IDF troops, taking part in a nonviolent march to the separation wall in Bil`in (10s suffer tear gas inhalation); fires rubber-coated steel bullets, stun grenades, tear gas at Palestinian and international activists, some of whom throw stones at IDF troops, taking part in protests against the separation wall in Ni`lin (10s suffer tear gas inhalation); fires rubber-coated steel bullets, tear gas, stun grenades at Palestinians staging a nonviolent march to land located between Dayr Nizam and al-Nabi Salih recently confiscated for the expansion of Halamish settlement (10s suffer tear gas inhalation); conducts late-night patrols in Rumana village w. of Jenin. Hamas accuses Fatah of links to the 1/20/10 assassination of Izzeddin al-Qassam Brigades founder Mahmud al-Mabhuh, saying that 2 Palestinian suspects in custody in Dubai in connection with the assassination, Anwar Shhaybar and Ahmad Hassanayn, were former Fatah security officers and current employees of a senior Fatah official. Fatah denies the accusation. (NYT 2/20; PCHR 2/24; OCHA 2/25) 20 FEBRUARY In Gaza, IDF troops on the s. Gaza border e. of al-Qarara exchange cross-border fire with armed Palestinians, causing no reported injuries; Israeli naval vessels then shell the area, injuring 3 armed Palestinians, damaging a mosque. IDF troops in observation towers on the Gaza border e. of Jabaliya fire on Palestinian farmers working land 400 m fr. the border (outside Israel's no-go zone), forcing them to leave. Israeli naval vessels fire on Palestinian fishing boats off the n. Gaza coast, forcing them to return to shore. Late in the evening, IDF troops on the n. Gaza border fire at Palestinian homes in Bayt Hanun for 40 mins., causing no injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF opens fire on a Palestinian vehicle driving nr. Husan village w. of Bethlehem, wounding 3 Palestinians (ages 17–21), claiming they fired on an IDF patrol; fires tear gas, stun grenades at Palestinians attempting to reach their agricultural land inside a closed military zone nr. Hebron, injuring an 8-yr.-old Palestinian boy; raids and seals (until 2/28) 2 Palestinian organizations in Sur Bahir nr. Jerusalem; imposes a late-night curfew on, conducts house searches in al-Zubaydat village nr. Jericho. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba settlement in Hebron throw stones and bottles at Palestinian houses in nearby Wadi Husayn, injuring a 7-yr.-old Palestinian boy. Jewish settlers fr. Shilo settlement n. of Ramallah seize 10 d. of Palestinian agricultural land to expand their settlement. (PCHR 2/24; OCHA 2/25) 21 FEBRUARY IDF troops on the n. Gaza border fire on Palestinians scavenging construction material from destroyed buildings 400 m fr. the border, forcing them to flee; no injuries are reported. Shortly after, the same IDF unit shells the area where the Palestinians had been scavenging as well as a Palestinian home in Bayt Lahiya, causing damage but no injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in Bayt Rima nr. Ramallah during the day; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Hebron. Some 50 Jewish settlers break into the ancient Na'aran synagogue in Palestinian-controlled area A in Jericho to hold religious services, declaring their hopes of “renewing Jewish settlement in Jericho” (see Quarterly Update for details); the IDF removes the settlers, arresting at least 35. Jewish settlers escorted by IDF troops enter Kafr Haris village n. of Salfit to perform Jewish prayers at monuments in the village. (HA 2/22; PCHR 2/24; OCHA 2/25) Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu adds 2 key West Bank Jewish shrines, the Tomb of the Patriarchs (known as al-Ibrahimi Mosque to Palestinians) in the center of Hebron and Rachel's Tomb just inside Bethlehem, to Israel's national heritage sites, allocating $1 m. for their maintenance and repair as part of a $100 m. project to refurbish and link 150 national heritage sites, creating a “historical biblical trail [to] educate the next generation about Jewish and Zionist history.” The PA condemns the action. (IFM 2/21; PCHR, WT 2/22; NYT 2/23; JPI 3/4) (see Quarterly Update for details) 22 FEBRUARY Palestinians protesting Netanyahu's 2/21 decision to add sites in Bethlehem and Hebron to Israel's national heritage roster clash with IDF troop in Hebron; no serious injuries are reported. IDF troops conduct late-night arrest raids, house searches in al-Fara`a r.c. s. of Tubas and nr. Hebron, Jenin, Nablus, Ramallah. In Gaza, the IDF makes a day-long incursion to level land along the n. Gaza border nr. Bayt Lahiya to clear lines of sight. Jewish settlers fr. Yitzhar settlement nr. Nablus uproot 45 Palestinian olive trees in nearby Burin village; the IDF imposes a curfew on the village while the settlers work. Palestinians report (PCHR 2/24) that in the previous wk. Israel's Jerusalem planning comm. convened to discuss a plan to build 549 settlement housing units on 153 d. of Bayt Safafa land s. of Jerusalem as part of a 4-stage settlement expansion plan, though no decisions were taken; the plan (several parts of which were approved before Netanyahu declared a temporary settlement freeze in 11/09; see Quarterly Update for background) is aimed at reinforcing the separation of Jerusalem from the s. West Bank. (NYT, WT 2/23; PCHR 2/24; OCHA 2/25) 23 FEBRUARY In the West Bank, low-level clashes between Palestinian protesters and the IDF continue in Hebron for a 2d day, with no serious injuries reported. The IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Tulkarm. The UN reports that in the previous wk., the IDF demolished 1 Palestinian home nr. Hebron; 1 Palestinian died of electrocution in a smuggling tunnel nr. the Rafah border. (PCHR 2/24; OCHA 2/25; NYT 2/26; PCHR 3/4) 24 FEBRUARY The IDF makes a brief incursion 700 m into the al-Fukhari area of s. Gaza to level 60 d. of agricultural land. In the West Bank, low-level clashes between Palestinian protesters and the IDF continue in Hebron for a 3d day, with no serious injuries reported. The IDF demolishes 6 wells w. of Jenin that provide water to 47 greenhouses and 456 d. of agricultural land; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Hebron, Ramallah. (NYT 2/26; OCHA, PCHR 3/4).
Topic:: Humanitarian Aid
Political Geography:: Middle East and Israel

361. Bibliography of Periodical Literature

Author:: Norbert Scholz
Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: REFERENCE AND GENERAL Hamoudi, Haider A. “Orientalism and the Fall and Rise of the Islamic State.” Middle East Law and Governance 2, no. 1 (10): 81–103. Smith, Robert O. “Toward a Lutheran Response to Christian Zionism.” Dialog 48, no. 3 (Fall 09): 279–91. HISTORY (THROUGH 1948) AND GEOGRAPHY Bouchard, Mathieu. “Les intellectuels et la question palestinienne (1945–1948).” CM, no. 72 (Win. 09): 19–27. Cahill, Richard A. “The Image of 'Black and Tans' in Late Mandate Palestine.” JQ, no. 40 (Win. 09–10): 43–51. Chazan, Meir. “The Dispute in Mapai over 'Self-Restraint' and 'Purity of Arms' during the Arab Revolt.” Jewish Social Studies 15, no. 3 (Spr.–Sum. 09): 89–113. Cohen, Michael J. “Was the Balfour Declaration at Risk in 1923? Zionism and British Imperialism.” JIsH 29, no. 1 (Mar. 10): 79–98. Greenberg, Zalman, and Rakefet Kahanov. “The League of Nations Malaria Commission to Palestine” [in Hebrew]. Cathedra, no. 134 (Dec. 09): 49–64. Horowitz, Elliott. “'Remarkable Rather for Its Eloquence Than Its Truth': Modern Travelers Encounter the Holy Land—and Each Other's Accounts There.” Jewish Quarterly Review 99, no. 4 (Fall 09): 439–64. Kedar, Nir. “Democracy and Judicial Autonomy in Israel's Early Years.” IsS 16, no. 1 (Spr. 10): 25–46. Matossian, Bedross D. “The Young Turk Revolution: Its Impact on Religious Politics of Jerusalem (1908–1912).” JQ, no. 40 (Win. 09–10): 18–33. Mazza, Roberto. “Antonio de la Cierva y Lewita: The Spanish Consul in Jerusalem 1914–1920.” JQ, no. 40 (Win. 09–10): 34–42. Radzyner, Amihai. “A Constitution for Israel: The Design of the Leo Kohn Proposal, 1948.” IsS 16, no. 1 (Spr. 10): 1–24. Robson, Laura C. “Archeology and Mission: The British Presence in Nineteenth-Century Jerusalem.” JQ, no. 40 (Win. 09–10): 5–17. Smith, Daniella O. “Hotel Design in British Mandate Palestine: Modernism and the Zionist Vision.” JIsH 29, no. 1 (Mar. 10): 99–123. PALESTINIAN POLITICS AND SOCIETY Abu Dakka, Muhammad. “After the 6th Conference: Fatah's Priorities and Its New Political Rhetoric” [in Arabic]. Siyasat, no. 11 (10): 75–90. Bistofli, Robert. “Les chrétiens dans la résistance palestinienne.” CM, no. 72 (Win. 09): 135–38. Dajani, Mohammed. “Il est temps de voire naitre un nouveau parti palestinien.” CO, no. 96 (Oct. 09): 49–55. Dajani, Munther. “La bande de Gaza est dans les limbes.” CO, no. 96 (Oct. 09): 19–23. Frisch, Hillel. “Strategic Change in Terrorist Movements: Lessons from Hamas.” Studies in Conflict and Terrorism 32, no. 12 (09): 1049–65. Hilal, Jamil. “The Polarization of the Palestinian Political Field.” JPS 39, no. 3 (Spr. 10): 24–39. Hitti, Nassif. “La question palestinienne, une question résoluble mais un conflit structurant.” CO, no. 96 (Oct. 09): 37–48. Ibraghith, Sawfat. “La Palestine entre le marteau de l'occupation et l'enclume des divisions.” CO, no. 96 (Oct. 09): 27–36. Issa, Shawqi. “Palestine: Notes from the Inside.” Race and Class 51, no. 3 (Jan. 10): 66–72. Karmi, Ghada. “Interview: Ghada Karmi, a Voice from Exile.” MEP 17, no. 1 (Spr. 10): 82–89. Khalidi, Ahmad S. “An Evaluation of Salam Fayyad's Plan” [in Arabic]. MDF, nos. 80–81 (Fall–Win. 09–10): 26–28. Mi'ari, Mahmoud. “Transformation of Collective Identity in Palestine.” Journal of Asian and African Studies 44, no. 6 (Dec. 09): 579–98. Pradhan, Bansidhar. “Palestinian Politics in the Post-Arafat Period.” International Studies 45, no. 4 (Oct.–Dec. 08): 295–339. Raafat, Saleh, et al. (roundtable). “Palestinian Politics: The Dilemma and Setbacks of Options” [in Arabic]. Siyasat, no. 11 (10): 111–27. Talhami, Daoud. “The Palestinian People's Choices and the Lack of Solutions in the Short Run” [in Arabic]. MDF, nos. 80–81 (Fall–Win. 09–10): 10–20. Tilley, Virginia. “A Palestinian Declaration of Independence: Implications for Peace.” MEP 17, no. 1 (Spr. 10): 52–67. Younes, Anna-Esther. “A Gendered Movement for Liberation: Hamas's Women's Movement and Nation Building in Contemporary Palestine.” CAA 3, no. 1 (Jan. 10): 21–37. Zayd, Sayyid. “Local Authorities in Palestine: Revenues and Ways of Development” [in Arabic]. Siyasat, no. 11 (10): 139–47. JERUSALEM Jacir, Emily (interview). “Destination: Jerusalem Servees; Interview by Adila Laïdi-Hainieh.” JQ, no. 40 (Win. 09–10): 59–67. Khamaisi, Rassem. “Resisting Creeping Urbanization and Gentrification in the Old City of Jerusalem and Its Surroundings.” CAA 3, no. 1 (Jan. 10): 53–70. Matossian, Bedross D. “The Young Turk Revolution: Its Impact on Religious Politics of Jerusalem (1908–1912).” JQ, no. 40 (Win. 09–10): 18–33. Omer-Sherman, Ranen. “Yehuda Amichai, Jerusalem, and the Fate of Others.” Cross Currents 59, no. 4 (Dec. 09): 467–83. Robson, Laura C. “Archeology and Mission: The British Presence in Nineteenth-Century Jerusalem.” JQ, no. 40 (Win. 09–10): 5–17. Israeli Politics, Society, and Zionism Ben-Shalom, Uzi, and Shaul Fox. “Military Psychology in the Israel Defense Forces: A Perspective of Continuity and Change.” Armed Forces and Society 36, no. 1 (Oct. 09): 103–19. Benzion, Uri, Shosh Shahrabani, and Tal Shavit. “Emotions and Perceived Risks after the 2006 Israel-Lebanon War.” Mind and Society 8, no. 1 (Jun. 09): 21–41. Berent, Moshe. “The Ethnic Democracy Debate: How Unique Is Israel?” Israeli Sociology 11, no. 2 (09–10): 303–35. Chaaban, Abdel Hussein, et al. “Israel's Trial between Law and Politics” [in Arabic]. Dirasat Bahith 8, nos. 28–29 (Fall–Spr. 10): 39–67. Charbit, Denis. “La cause laïque en Israël est-elle perdue? Atouts, faiblesses et mutation.” Critique Internationale, no. 44 (Jul.–Sep. 09): 65–80. Cohen, Asher, and Bernard Susser. “Stability in the Haredi Camp and Upheavals in Nationalist Zionism: An Analysis of the Religious Parties in the 2009 Elections.” IsA 16, no. 1 (Jan. 10): 82–104. Conforti, Yitzhak. “East and West in Jewish Nationalism: Conflicting Types in the Zionist Vision?” Nations and Nationalism 16, no. 2 (Apr. 10): 201–19. Diskin, Abraham. “The Likud: The Struggle for the Centre.” IsA 16, no. 1 (Jan. 10): 51–68. Elias, Nelly, and Adriana Kemp. “The New Second Generation: Non-Jewish Olim, Black Jews and Children of Migrant Workers in Israel.” IsS 16, no. 1 (Spr. 10): 73–94. Friedberg, Chen, and Reuven Hazan. “Israel's Prolonged War against Terror: From Executive Domination to Executive-Legislative Dialogue.” Journal of Legislative Studies 15, no. 2–3 (Jun. 09): 257–76. Gavrieli-Nuri, Dalia. “Saying 'War,' Thinking 'Victory'—The Mythmaking Surrounding Israel's 1967 Victory.” IsS 16, no. 1 (Spr. 10): 95–114. Gerstenfeld, Manfred. “The Run-up to the Elections: A Political History of the 2009 Campaign.” IsA 16, no. 1 (Jan. 10): 14–30. Ghanem, As`ad, and Mohanad Mustafa. “Arab Local Government in Israel: Partial Modernisation as an Explanatory Variable for Shortages in Management.” Local Government Studies 35, no. 4 (Aug. 09): 457–73. Goldberg, Giora. “Kadima Goes Back: The Limited Power of Vagueness.” IsA 16, no. 1 (Jan. 10): 31–50. Halperin, Eran, Daniel Bar-Tal, et al. “Socio-Psychological Implications for an Occupying Society: The Case of Israel.” JPR 47, no. 1 (Jan. 10): 59–70. Halperin, Eran, Daphna Canetti, Stevan Hobfoll, et al. “Terror, Resource Gains and Exclusionist Political Attitudes among New Immigrants and Veteran Israelis.” Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 35, no. 6 (Jul. 09): 997–1014.
Topic:: Islam and War
Political Geography:: Middle East

362. John Mearsheimer on the State of the Israel Lobby

Publication Date:: 06-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Cléa Thouin: The Journal of Palestine Studies summer 2010 issue includes a report on the annual conference of the leading pro-Israel lobby , the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, as well as excerpts from a congressional letter to President Obama sponsored by J Street, a new pro-Israel group. I'm Cléa Thouin, assistant editor for the Journal of Palestine Studies.
Political Geography:: United States, Israel, and Palestine

363. The Mavi Marmara at the Frontlines of Web 2.0

Author:: Diana Allan and Curtis Brown
Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Within hours of Israeli commandos' deadly raid on 31 May 2010 on the Mavi Marmara, the Turkish aid ship attempting to break the siege of Gaza as part of a six-ship Freedom Flotilla, the Israel Defense Forces' (IDF) official public relations (PR) and media body had uploaded a series of videos of the attack on the flotilla to YouTube. Edited from footage confiscated from professional journalists, pro-Palestinian activists, CCTV cameras onboard, and IDF surveillance, these videos shaped the U.S. media's understanding of the raid. While the journalists and activists were held incommunicado for days, Israel used the media blackout to present its narrative, justifying the killing of civilian activists by claiming that soldiers were forced to open fire in self-defense. The video footage, we were told, spoke for itself.
Topic:: Cold War
Political Geography:: United States, Turkey, and Israel

364. Interview with Curtis Brown

Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: No abstract is available.
Topic:: War
Political Geography:: America

365. From the Editor

Author:: Rashid I. Khalidi
Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has increasingly been defined in terms of the resolution of the question of the Palestinian territories occupied in 1967: East Jerusalem, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip. This purposely short-sighted focus neglects two facts: that the conflict commenced well before 1967, and that the majority of Palestinians live outside these areas. Thus, most discussions of a resolution of the conflict ignore the interests and rights of the 1.5 million Palestinians who live inside the State of Israel and who are vitally affected by issues like the demand for recognition of Israel as a Jewish state.
Political Geography:: Israel and Jerusalem

366. UNRWA and the Refugees: A Difficult but Lasting Marriage

Author:: Jalal Al Husseini
Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Over the last sixty years, UNRWA's relationship to the Palestinian refugees it serves has undergone profound changes. Faced with the difficult task of adapting a humanitarian regime to a highly politicized environment, the agency has had to thread its way through the diverse and sometimes conflicting expectations of the international donor states, the Arab host countries, and the refugees themselves, who from the start were deeply suspicious of UNRWA's mandate as inimical to the right of return. Against this background, the article traces the evolution of the agency's role from service and relief provider to virtual mouthpiece for the refugees on the international stage and, on an administrative level, from a disciplinary regime to emphasis on community participation and finally to the embrace of a developmental agenda. Although UNRWA's presence, originally seen as temporary, seems likely to endure, the article argues that financial and political constraints are likely to thwart its new agenda. SINCE BEGINNING OPERATIONS in May 1950, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has emerged as the main stakeholder in the Palestinian refugee issue. The traditional provider of education, medical care, relief, and social services to the Palestine refugees (today numbering almost 5 million in UNRWA's five fields of operation), it has more recently assumed new responsibilities in infrastructure and camp improvement. As the only existing UN agency created to serve a single national refugee population, its main institutional specificity lies in its unparalleled exposure to that population, with the vast majority of its local staff being refugees themselves. UNRWA's close proximity to Palestinian refugee society has lent itself to controversial and contradictory assessments. On the one hand, it has enabled its staff to adapt efficiently to the refugees' evolving needs and made for impressive operational achievements, including the spread of literacy throughout the entire refugee population, the absence of epidemics, quick responses to emergency situations, and vocational and other training for tens of thousands of refugees. In so doing, it has actively helped “prevent conditions of starvation and distress among refugees and to further conditions of peace and stability” in the Middle East. On the other hand, this very proximity has led to charges, especially in the United States and Israel, that the agency has become hostage to the refugees' political claims, thus contributing to perpetuating the problem. UNRWA's constant efforts to guarantee the politically neutral nature of its activities while adjusting its mandate in keeping with the refugees' changing needs and aspirations have been a defining characteristic of its sixty years in operation. Over the years, it has gradually endeavored to promote the refugees' self-reliance either as actors integrated into the host economies or as partners in the delivery of various services, particularly in the refugee camps. More recently, expanding this participatory emphasis, it has started to apply a human development approach to the full range of its activities as a means of helping the refugees achieve their full potential. UNRWA's programs, as well as the operational norms and regulations it has adopted in order to structure its working relations with the refugees, have been greatly affected by its evolving perceptions of them, as will be seen below. THE POLITICAL LIMITATIONS OF ECONOMIC APPROACHES TO THE REFUGEE ISSUE UNRWA's approach to the Palestine refugees long bore the stamp of the first phase of its operations in the 1950s, when it endeavored to fulfill the goals ascribed to it by UN General Assembly (UNGA) Resolution 302 (IV) of 8 December 1949. Article 7 states that UNRWA was to “carry out in collaboration with local governments the direct relief and works programs as recommended by the Economic Survey Mission (ESM).” The ESM's recommendations involved giving the refugees, mostly unemployed farmers and unskilled workers, the opportunity to work “where they were” by involving them in a program of temporary small-scale public works (terracing, afforestation, road construction, irrigation works, and other engineering schemes) that would help them become self-reliant. This program, fully funded by UNWRA, was to constitute a first step toward their “reintegration” into the host state economies, according to the ESM; their longer-term integration required large-scale economic development schemes that could only be borne by the interested governments themselves. In the meantime, UNRWA was to consult with these governments “concerning measures to be taken by them preparatory to the time when international assistance for relief and works projects is no longer available.” As early as mid-1951, UNWRA had shifted to a new approach, emphasizing more ambitious development schemes designed in cooperation with the host governments to directly “resettle” or “re-establish” the refugees in those countries. This would be achieved by expanding the latter's absorptive capacity through various medium- to large-scale housing, agricultural, and infrastructural projects; loans or grants for the establishment of small enterprises; training for occupations where there was a shortage of indigenous trained workers; and assistance for migration abroad. By 1957, however, the failure of the approach was clear: the number of refugees who had become fully self-supportive since 1950 stood at a mere 24,000, whereas 933,000 persons were still dependent on UNRWA services.
Topic:: Humanitarian Aid
Political Geography:: United States and Middle East

367. (In)Security and Reconstruction in Post-conflict Nahr al-Barid Refugee Cam

Author:: Ismael Sheikh Hassan and Sari Hanafi
Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This article examines the intersection of the Lebanese state's post-conflict security policy in Nahr al-Barid refugee camp and the reconstruction of the camp, which was destroyed in a battle between the Lebanese army and the militant group Fatah al-Islam. The significance of the government's security focus derives from its intention to make Nahr al-Barid a “model” for all the other camps in the country. After discussing the Lebanese security context, the characteristics of the pre-conflict camp, the arrival of Fatah al-Islam, and the ensuing battle, the authors focus on the urban planning process for a reconstructed Nahr al-Barid, highlighting both the state's militarization of the process and the local grassroots planning initiative which, in partnership with UNRWA, managed to secure some concessions. Also analyzed is the government plan submitted to donors, which conceives of “governance” as community policing without addressing the status of the Palestinians in Lebanon. IN THE SUMMER OF 2007, the Palestinian refugee camp of Nahr al-Barid, the second largest of the fourteen United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) camps in Lebanon, was totally demolished. This was a result of a battle between the Lebanese army and Fatah al-Islam, an Islamist fundamentalist group, predominantly foreign, that had implanted itself in the camp only six months earlier. After its destruction, the camp remained a strict militarized zone, imposing additional hardship on a post-disaster community of refugees struggling to rebuild their lives. Various security-based projects and policies affecting the camp's urban form, governance structure, and legal status that were planned, negotiated, or approved by the Lebanese government signaled a new era in Lebanese-refugee relations. With the events of Nahr al-Barid, the Lebanese state entered the realm of the camp, and security concerns and practices assumed new forms that would potentially affect the future lives of Palestinian refugees in all Lebanon. The camp remains a military zone to this day. More importantly, the Lebanese government's plan to make Nahr al-Barid a security model for the other Palestinian refugee camps in the country brings the issue of security more urgently to the forefront of the debate about Palestinians in Lebanon. Nahr al-Barid also fits into a wider security discussion relating to Palestinians in the host countries in the context of the “war against terror,” with issues relating to the status of camps becoming intertwined with the correlative themes of good governance, refugee rights, human security, and integration for the benefit of international donors and development agencies, even as policies on the ground disregard and sometimes contradict these concepts. This article is based on two years of fieldwork and action research in Nahr al-Barid camp. Our involvement included participation in local community post-conflict initiatives, in-depth interviews with Nahr al-Barid residents and community leaders, and up-close observation of various Palestinian and Lebanese actors in the reconstruction planning process. Our aim is to contribute to the debate on the role of “security” in dictating state policy and actions during and after the battle. The fact that government policies are still in flux makes reflection and debate on these events all the more urgent. CONTEXTUALIZING SECURITY WITHIN PALESTINIAN REFUGEE CAMPS A variety of themes and discourses at the local, regional, and global level intertwine as a backdrop to a discussion of the heightened security measures for Palestinian refugee camps in general and Nahr al-Barid in particular. One of these is the state's traditional fear of refugees as a potentially threatening and disruptive political force. Ironically, this fear—and the security measures it engenders—is shared by those who produced the refugee problem and the host states that suffered its consequences; indeed, some disturbing parallels have been drawn, mutatis mutandi, between measures against Palestinians enacted by Israel and Arab states in the name of security. Thus, whereas historically the violent conflicts between the Palestinian movement and various Arab regimes were attributed to ideological differences and power struggles, the current situation seems to be heading in new directions. Today, what has become a seemingly universal obsession with security and fighting terror increasingly infiltrates Arab slogans to validate various practices against Palestinian camps and neighborhoods (not to mention against their own citizens). These practices affecting citizens/refugees and cities/camps alike are empowered by largely uncritical international military, financial, and political support for the “war on terror.” As a result, massive urban destruction has been wreaked on densely populated communities with scant consideration for civilian populations, with the suspension of civil liberties and imposition of siege now standard procedures validated by security-based arguments for Afghanistan (2001), Iraq (2003), Jenin/Nablus in the West Bank (2002), Lebanon (2006), Nahr al-Barid (2007), Gaza (2008), and Yemen (2009).
Topic:: Islam and United Nations
Political Geography:: Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen, Gaza, and Lebanon

368. In the Ruins of Nahr al-Barid: Understanding the Meaning of the Camp

Author:: Adam Ramadan
Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The destruction of Nahr al-Barid camp in Lebanon in 2007 was a disaster for the 35,000 people for whom it had become home. To understand what was lost, this article explores what the refugee camp is and what it does, materially and imaginatively, for its residents. Drawing on the words of ordinary Palestinians from Nahr al-Barid and Rashidiyya camps, it describes how the camps are social, cultural, and political refuges from marginalization in exile. While the camps draw meaning from a particular Palestinian time-space that emphasizes displacement and transience, they have also become meaningful places in themselves. Consequently, the loss of Nahr al-Barid and the displacement of its society have been understood as a repetition of the foundational experience of the modern Palestinian nation: the Nakba. IN TRYING TO PORTRAY the disturbed and discontinuous nature of Palestinian existence, Edward Said wrote that Palestinians in exile do not really live, but “linger in nondescript places, neither here nor there.” From this perspective, life in exile is a kind of meaningless purgatory through which Palestinians must pass before the promised future return. Time is privileged over space, and the present comes to be seen as a temporary transition between a meaningful past and a hopeful future. In contrast to Said's claim, I would argue that the refugee camps in which so many Palestinians live are neither meaningless nor nondescript. They may be temporary spaces in which Palestinian refugees await their right to return, but they have nevertheless become imbued with meaning and significance over decades of Palestinian habitation and place making. As I argue in this essay, the meaning and importance of a camp is perhaps never clearer than when the camp is viewed through the prism of loss. Between May and October 2007, a new chapter was written in the story of the Palestinian people. Nahr al-Barid, a Palestinian refugee camp in north Lebanon home to 35,000 people, was totally demolished first by a 104-day military conflict between two non-Palestinian sides, and then through the actions of the victorious Lebanese army: looting, arson, and vandalism. Nahr al-Barid's destruction resumed a sequence of erasure of Palestinian camps in Lebanon dating back over three decades to the destruction of Nabatiyya, Tal al-Za`atar, Dikwaneh, and Jisr al-Basha camps in the early years of the 1975–1990 civil war. The Palestinians of Nahr al-Barid were displaced to Biddawi camp and further afield, staying with friends, relatives, and acquaintances, or sheltering in garages, storerooms, and improvised shelters. With the camp destroyed and the Lebanese army refusing to allow people back, the prospect of a quick return faded into a prolonged and uncertain displacement. In order to understand what, besides buildings and property, was destroyed in Nahr al-Barid, it is necessary to ask what a refugee camp is and—more importantly—what it does, both materially and imaginatively, for its Palestinian residents. In this article, I explore how Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon act as social, cultural, and political refuges from marginalization in exile. I do this by looking at two camps: the destroyed Nahr al-Barid in the north and the still “thriving” Rashidiyya in the south. Using 128 semistructured, qualitative interviews conducted with residents of the two camps in 2007 and 2008, I show how the camps draw meaning from a particular Palestinian time-space, which emphasizes displacement and transience, while at the same time becoming meaningful places in themselves. In these interviews, I asked people about life in the camp, the advantages and disadvantages of living there, what the camp means to them, and prospects for the future. Rashidiyya and Nahr al-Barid are quite different places politically, economically, and socially, but my intention here is not a straight comparison between the two. Rather, I have juxtaposed opinions and quotations from residents of the two camps: the residents of Rashidiyya talking of what they have, those of Nahr al-Barid talking of what they have lost. My aim was to understand what the camps mean and do for Palestinian refugees living a marginalized existence in Lebanon. THE PRESENT AS TRANSIENT A refugee camp can be defined as a temporary humanitarian space, usually set up by international humanitarian agencies and designed to meet the basic human needs of displaced people, including shelter, protection, and short-term relief. Palestinian refugee camps have these basic functions, and Palestinians receive relief, welfare, and social services provided by the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), Palestinian political factions, and various Palestinian and international NGOs, charities, and other groups. In the course of six decades, however, the camps have developed into seemingly permanent features of the landscapes of Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, the West Bank, and Gaza. Over the years, the inhabitants themselves replaced their tents first with corrugated iron and then with brick and concrete, and the camps became like small cities. As the built environment was assembled into something more permanent, the slow accumulation of experiences and memories, births and deaths, built up a sense of place and meaning. Alongside the networks of formal institutional support, myriad informal social relations among camp individuals and families formed channels through which help and support are given and received. As much as the material fabric of buildings and streets, these relations between people and institutions constitute the space of the camp, creating a place of refuge from the bewildering disorientation and insecurity of exile.
Political Geography:: Arabia and Lebanon

369. Inside the Christians United for Israel Summit in Washington, D.C., 20-22 July 2010

Author:: Alice Bach
Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: A biblical scholar attends the fifth annual summit of the Christians United for Israel, held in Washington, D.C., from 20 to 22 July 2010, and casts a critical eye on its proceedings, politics, and use of scripture. IT WAS ONE OF the hottest days of the summer. I was walking down K Street toward the Washington Convention Center to attend the Christians United for Israel (CUFI) 2010 summit. Founded in 2006, CUFI after only five years is the largest Christian pro-Israel organization in the United States and is running neck and neck with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) in terms of membership. After constant programming in churches and hotel banquet halls, regionally and nationally, it has become a powerful political entity that now claims 428,000 members, holds some 40 events per month nationwide, and boasts a growing network on college campuses, not to mention Hispanic and African American outreach programs. CUFI's financing and budget are difficult to trace, although its gifts to settlements, particularly the $6 million (CUFI's figure) to the settlement of Ariel, are widely publicized to indicate the organization's deep commitment to the expansion of the State of Israel. Over the past year, I had begun to suspect that this group was not just fodder for progressive blogs, so to find out about CUFI and its charismatic founder, preacher, and CEO, John C. Hagee, I came to Washington, D.C., from 20 to 22 July 2010 to attend its fifth annual summit. Passing a Jews for Jesus van illegally parked in front of the convention center, I realized that now was the time to suppress my impulses as a religion professor who has to tell her undergraduates that there is scant historical evidence to support the narratives in the books of Genesis, Exodus, Numbers, Joshua, and Judges, and not more than an inscription or two for the life of King David. Especially, I wanted to avoid the fate of Max Blumenthal, a well-known monitor of CUFI publications and radio shows who has covered the Christian right for nearly a decade and who was thrown out of the 2007 CUFI summit on the very first day. He had seen enough, however, to write that he had “never witnessed any spectacle as politically extreme, outrageous, or bizarre as the one Christians United for Israel produced last week in Washington.” ARISE AND GO TO NINEVEH Inside the blessedly air-conditioned convention center, I walked up to the uniformed guards armed with airport-like security equipment. “Your bag please,” one uniform said politely while another stepped forward and wanded me. I passed, got my bag back, and was handed over to two smiling young women who showed me where to register and wished me a “blessed day.” Five people were set up to provide us with registration packets. There were no lines of impatient people. I handed the woman tagged “Rosie” my acceptance letter and she slipped the bar code under an OCR reader. Smiling, she pointed to a large printer behind her. “We'll have you set in just a minute, Alice. Here is your packet, with all the study materials you will need to get up to CUFI speed!” The bulging packet also contained a complete spiral-bound list of political Washington: descriptions and all-important addresses and phone numbers of all members of Congress, the top administrators of the executive branch, and other assorted Washington pols. There were bumper stickers, tickets to the Holocaust Museum and a map showing how to get there, lists of restaurants, and advertisements for the publications of Pastor Hagee. Rosie tapped the packet. “Now you be sure to watch the DVD from Zion Oil. It might just change your life.” As it turned out, Zion Oil and Gas, Inc. was not discussed in any of the conference plenaries or breakout sessions. But delegates, especially those from Texas, knew all about the company and some had even invested in it as a kind of protection for Israel. As a Christian Zionist and New Covenant believer, John Brown, founder and chairman of Zion Oil and Gas, had received the calling to help the nation of Israel restore the land by providing the oil and gas necessary for maintaining political and economic independence. His testament and vision statement appeared on the cover of the Zion Oil and Gas packages that the Texas delegates were only too glad to share.
Political Geography:: Washington and Israel

370. Tamari: Mountain against the Sea: Essays on Palestinian Society and Culture

Author:: Ellen Fleischmann
Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Salim Tamari, professor of sociology at Birzeit University and the director of the Institute of Jerusalem Studies, has produced an erudite, entertaining, and engrossing study of Palestinian society and culture. More than once in the text, he admiringly describes educator Khalil Sakakini's “crisp” writing in Arabic (p. 2). In this volume of essays, many of which have been previously published, Tamari often writes pretty “crisply” himself, honing in on themes that define Palestinian history, social fabric, and experience. He is concerned, above all, with modernity, and the elements that have contributed to the making of an “unfulfilled” (p. 3) Palestinian modernity. Situating Palestinian urban life, society, intelligentsia, and culture within an eastern Mediterranean context, he examines how Palestine fit into this milieu, yet, ultimately was “set[] apart,” due to its being “forcibly separated from that context” (p. 4) in 1917. Although most of the essays are historical or have a strong historical bent, they also include material on contemporary Palestinian society, integrating it within its historical background and tracing historical influences that have shaped contemporary phenomena. The book showcases a valuable and rich treasure trove of Palestinian historical and literary material, including personal memoirs and diaries produced by an interestingly diverse sample of Palestinian intellectuals from the late Ottoman period. Tamari, in collaboration with other scholars such as Issam Nassar, has performed a real service in recovering, publishing, and utilizing this material.
Political Geography:: Palestine, Arabia, and Jerusalem

371. Zeitoun: Power and Water in the Middle East: The Hidden Politics of the Palestinian-Israeli Water Conflict

Author:: Jan Selby
Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Power and Water in the Middle East: The Hidden Politics of the Palestinian- Israeli Water Conflict, by Mark Zeitoun. London and New York: I.B. Tauris, 2008. xvi + 164 pages. Appendices to p. 178. Notes to p. 190. Bibliography to p. 208. Index p. 214. $89.00 cloth.
Topic:: Government
Political Geography:: Middle East and Palestine

372. Kattan: From Coexistence to Conquest: International Law and the Origins of the Arab-Israeli Conflict, 1891-1949

Author:: Diana Buttu
Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: From Coexistence to Conquest: International Law and the Origins of the Arab-Israeli Confict, 1891–1949, by Victor Kattan with foreword by Richard Falk. New York and London: Pluto Press, 2009. ix + 261 pages. References to p. 367. Select bibliography to p. 387. List of individuals to p. 395. Glossary to p. 402. Index to p. 416. $54.95 paper; $149.50 cloth.
Topic:: International Law
Political Geography:: New York and Arabia

373. Becker: Palestine, Israel, and the U.S. Empire

Author:: Joel Kovel
Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Richard Becker's Palestine, Israel and the U.S. Empire is a succinct yet ambitious study of the conquest of Palestine eventuating in the formation of the State of Israel, and of the history of Palestinian resistance to this development. The narrative covers the whole twentieth century and extends to the present, and its point of view is strongly pro-Palestinian and politically alert. Its chief merit is an uncompromising look at the potent role played by U.S. imperialism in the history and behavior of the State of Israel. This is refreshingly different from customary views of the Jewish state that regard Zionism and its triumph in Palestine through the lens of Jewish history and abstract from the great power relations that necessarily condition the fortunes of a settler-colonial society like Israel. I have already endorsed Becker's book for this reason. But I had to set aside some qualms in doing so; and while I would not change my overall assessment, I welcome this opportunity to correct the balance.
Political Geography:: United States, Israel, and Palestine

374. Feingold: Jewish Power in America: Myth and Reality

Author:: Lenni Brenner
Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Jewish Power in America: Myth and Reality, by Henry L. Feingold. New Brunswick: Transaction Publishers, 2008, xiv + 159 pages. Index to p. 164. $39.95 cloth.
Topic:: Government
Political Geography:: America and Washington

375. Breitman, McDonald Stewart, and Hochberg: Refugees and Rescue: The Diaries and Papers of James G. McDonald 1935-1945

Author:: Michael Fischbach
Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Refugees and Rescue: The Diaries and Papers of James G. McDonald 1935–1945, edited by Richard Breitman, Barbara McDonald Stewart, and Severin Hochberg. Published in association with the United States Holocaust Museum, Washington, D.C. Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 2009. x + 338 pages. Index to p. 359. $29.95 cloth.
Political Geography:: United States, Washington, and India

376. Grondahl: Gaza Graffiti: Messages of Love and Politics

Author:: Toufic Haddad
Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Swedish photojournalist Mia Gröndahl complements her thirty-year history of documenting the Palestinian experience in this beautiful, illustrated book exploring the rich and colorful world of Gaza's graffiti. But this work is more than just a collection of images suitable as a gift for urban art aficionados. It equally provides insightful commentary on Gaza's graffiti culture and the society that produced it, demonstrating the acumen of a veteran investigative journalist. Images and commentary combine to guide readers into a world they would otherwise have little exposure to, allowing them to assess Gaza's graffiti both as free-standing works of art and as objects of propaganda.
Topic:: Politics
Political Geography:: Israel, Palestine, and Gaza

377. Salaita: The Holy Land in Transit: Colonialism and the Quest for Canaan

Author:: Sinan Antoon
Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The Holy Land in Transit: Colonialism and the Quest for Canaan, by Steven Salaita. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 2006. ix + 182 pages. Notes to p. 208. Bibliography to p. 220. Index to p. 234. $34.95 cloth; $16.95 paper

378. Arab Views (cartoons from al-Hayat)

Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This section aims to give readers a glimpse of how the Arab world views current events that affect Palestinians and the Arab-Israeli conflict by presenting a selection of cartoons from al-Hayat, the most widely distributed mainstream daily in the Arab world. JPS is grateful to al-Hayat for permission to reprint its material.
Political Geography:: Israel and Arabia

379. Selections from the Press

Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This section includes articles and news items, mainly from Israeli but also from international press sources, that provide insightful or illuminating perspectives on events, developments, or trends in Israel and the occupied territories not readily available in the mainstream U.S. media.
Topic:: Development
Political Geography:: United States and Israel

380. Photos from the Quarter

Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This small sample of photos, selected from hundreds viewed by JPS, aims to convey a sense of the situation on the ground in the occupied territories during the quarter.

381. Quarterly Update on Conflict and Diplomacy:16 May - 15 August 2010

Author:: Michele K. Esposito
Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The Quarterly Update is a summary of bilateral, multilateral, regional, and international events affecting the Palestinians and the future of the peace process. More than 100 print, wire, television, and online sources providing U.S., Israeli, Arab, and international independent and government coverage of unfolding events are surveyed to compile the Quarterly Update. The most relevant sources are cited in JPS's Chronology section, which tracks events day by day.
Topic:: Government
Political Geography:: United States, Israel, and Arabia

382. Settlement Monitor

Author:: Geoffrey Aronson
Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This section covers items—reprinted articles, statistics, and maps—pertaining to Israeli settlement activities in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights. Unless otherwise stated, the items have been written by Geoffrey Aronson for this section or drawn from material written by him for Report on Israeli Settlement in the Occupied Territories (hereinafter Settlement Report), a Washington-based bimonthly newsletter published by the Foundation for Middle East Peace. JPS is grateful to the foundation for permission to draw on its material.
Political Geography:: Washington, Middle East, and Gaza

383. Chronology: 16 May - 15 August 2010

Author:: Michele K. Esposito
Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This section is part 107 of a chronology begun in JPS 13, no. 3 (Spring 1984). Chronology dates reflect Eastern Standard Time (EST). For a more comprehensive overview of events, and regional and international developments related to the peace process, see the Quarterly Update on Conflict and Diplomacy in this issue.
Topic:: Development and Diplomacy

384. Bibliography of Periodical Literature

Author:: Norbert Scholz
Publication Date:: 09-2010
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This section lists articles and reviews of books relevant to Palestine and the Arab-Israeli conflict. Entries are classified under the following headings: Reference and General; History (through 1948) and Geography; Palestinian Politics and Society; Jerusalem; Israeli Politics, Society, and Zionism; Arab and Middle Eastern Politics; International Relations; Law; Military; Economy, Society, and Education; Literature, Arts, and Culture; Book Reviews; and Reports Received. PURCHASE FULL BIBLIOGRAPHY (excerpt below) REFERENCE AND GENERAL Luyendijks, Joris. “Beyond Orientalism.” International Communication Gazette 72, no. 1 (Feb. 10): 9–20. HISTORY (THROUGH 1948) AND GEOGRAPHY Abbasi, Mustafa. “The Fall of Acre in the 1948 Palestine War.” JPS 39, no. 4 (Sum. 10): 6–27. Aytürk, Iker. “Revisiting the Language Factor in Zionism: The Hebrew Language Council from 1904 to 1914.” British Society of Oriental and African Studies 73, no. 1 (Feb. 10): 45–64. Blakely, Jeffrey A. “A Note on Henry Timberlake's Route from Gaza to Beersheba to Hebron in 1601.” Palestine Exploration Quarterly 142, no. 1 (Mar. 10): 64–68. Davidson, Lawrence. “Truman the Politician and the Establishment of Israel.” JPS 39, no. 4 (Sum. 10): 28–42. Fleischmann, Ellen L. “Lost in Translation: Home Economics and the Sidon Girls' School of Lebanon, c. 1924–1932.” Social Sciences and Missions 23, no. 1 (10): 32–62. Kark, Ruth, and Seth J. Frantzman. “Bedouin, Abdül Hamid II, British Land Settlement, and Zionism: The Baysan Valley and Sub-district 1831–1948.” IsS 15, no. 2 (Sum. 10): 49–79. Krampf, Arie. “Reception of the Developmental Approach in the Jewish Economic Discourse of Mandatory Palestine, 1934–1938.” IsS 15, no. 2 (Sum. 10): 80–103. Rose, John. “In Praise of the Sun: Zodiac Sun-Gods in Galilee Synagogues and the Palestinian Heritage.” HLS 9, no. 1 (May 10): 25–49. Segev, Tom (interview). “The Israeli Memory Begins in 1917” [in Arabic]. QI 9, no. 36 (09): 76–84. Shehory-Rubin, Zipora, and Shifra Shvarts. “Teaching the Children to Play: The Establishment of the First Playgrounds in Palestine during the Mandate.” IsS 15, no. 2 (Sum. 10): 24–48. PALESTINIAN POLITICS AND SOCIETY Abu `Amra, Rana. “UNRWA in Crisis” [in Arabic]. SD 48, no. 181 (Jul. 10): 186–89. AbuZayd, Karen. “UNRWA and the Palestinian Refugees after Sixty Years: Assessing Developments and Marking Challenges.” RSQ 28, nos. 2–3 (10): 227–28. Agha, Hussein (interview). “Interview: Hussein Agha.” MEP 17, no. 2 (Sum. 10): 142–51. Bartholomeusz, Lance. “The Mandate of UNRWA at Sixty.” RSQ 28, nos. 2–3 (10): 452–74. Bisharat, George. “Mobilizing Palestinians in Support of One State” [in Arabic]. MA 33, no. 375 (May 10): 95–111. Bocco, Riccardo. “UNRWA and the Palestinian Refugees: A History within History.” RSQ 28, nos. 2–3 (10): 229–52. Chatty, Dawn. “Palestinian Refugee Youth: Agency and Aspiration.” RSQ 28, nos. 2–3 (10): 318–38. De Cesari, Chiara. “Hebron, or Heritage as Technology of Life.” JQ, no. 41 (Spr. 10): 6–28. Fahs, Hani. “The Palestine That Brought Us Together: Mahboub Omar—A Story and a Message” [in Arabic]. MDF, no. 82 (Spr. 10): 70–79. Farah, Randa. “UNRWA: Through the Eyes of Its Refugee Employees in Jordan.” RSQ 28, nos. 2–3 (10): 389–411. Harding, Jeremy. “At the Allenby Bridge: Crossing the Jordan.” LRB 31, no. 12 (Jun. 09): 30. Hogan, Elena H. “Jewels of the Occupation: Gold Wedding Jewelry in the West Bank.” JPS 39, no. 4 (Sum. 10): 43–59. Al Husseini, Jalal, and Riccardo Bocco. “The Status of the Palestinian Refugees in the Near East: The Right of Return and UNRWA in Perspective.” RSQ 28, nos. 2–3 (10): 260–85. Imad, Jad. “The Palestinian State between Negotiations and International Resolution” [in Arabic]. SD 48, no. 181 (Jul. 10): 20–23. Jibril, Amjad. “Initiatives for Palestinian Reconciliation Following the Gaza War” [in Arabic]. MDF, no. 82 (Spr. 10): 115–29. Kagan, Michael. “Is There Really a Protection Gap? UNRWA's Role vis-à-vis Palestinian Refugees.” RSQ 28, nos. 2–3 (10): 511–30. Khouri, Rami G. “Sixty Years of UNRWA: From Service Provision to Refugee Protection.” RSQ 28, nos. 2–3 (10): 438–51. Lavie, Ephraim. “Between Settlement and Crisis: The Next Round of the Palestinian Issue.” Strategic Assessment 12, no. 4 (Feb. 10): 73–90. Manor, Yohanan, and Ido Mizrahi. “Hamas's Web School for Suicide Bombers.” MEQ 17, no. 2 (Spr. 10): 31–40. Mardam Bey, Farouk. “Nostalgic for the Sixties: 'Be Realistic and Ask for the Impossible'” [in Arabic]. MDF, no. 82 (Spr. 10): 46–53. Milstein, Michael. “The Challenge of al-Muqawama (Resistance) to Israel.” Strategic Assessment 12, no. 4 (Feb. 10): 57–71. Misselwitz, Philipp, and Sari Hanafi. “Testing a New Paradigm: UNRWA's Camp Improvement Programme.” RSQ 28, nos. 2–3 (10): 360–88. Morris, Nicholas. “Towards a Protection Strategy for UNRWA.” RSQ 28, nos. 2–3 (10): 550–60. Mozes, Tomer, and Gabriel Weimann. “The E-Marketing Strategy of Hamas.” SCT 33, no. 3 (10): 211–25. Mustafa, Mohammad (interview). “The Weakness of the Palestinian Economy” [in Arabic]. MDF, nos. 80¬–81 (Fall–Win. 09–10): 45–57. Pappé, Ilan. “The One-State Solution” [in Arabic]. MA 33, no. 375 (May 10): 149–63. Rabinowitz, Dan. “The Right to Refuse: Abject Theory and the Return of Palestinian Refugees.” Critical Inquiry 36, no. 3 (Spr. 10): 494–516. Rempel, Terry. “UNRWA and the Palestine Refugees: A Genealogy of 'Participatory' Development.” RSQ 28, nos. 2–3 (10): 412–37. Røislien, Hanne E., and Jo Røislien. “The Logic of Palestinian Terrorist Target Choice? Examining the Israel Defense Forces' Official Statistics on Palestinian Terrorist Attacks 2000–2004.” SCT 33, no. 2 (10): 134–48. Rosenfeld, Maya. “From Emergency Relief Assistance to Human Development and Back: UNRWA and the Palestinian Refugees, 1950–2009.” RSQ 28, nos. 2–3 (10): 286–317. Rueff, Henri, and Alain Viaro. “Palestinian Refugee Camps: From Shelter to Habitat.” RSQ 28, nos. 2–3 (10): 339–59. Sayre, Edward A. “Relative Deprivation and Palestinian Suicide Bombings.” Asian Journal of Social Science 38, no. 3 (10): 442–61. Shaw, Martin. “Palestine in an International Historical Perspective on Genocide.” HLS 9, no. 1 (May 10): 1–24. Strazzari, Francesco, and Simone Tholens. “Another Nakba: Weapons Availability and the Transformation of the Palestinian National Struggle, 1987–2007.” International Studies Perspectives 11, no. 2 (10): 112–30. Takkenberg, Lex. “UNRWA and the Palestinian Refugees after Sixty Years: Some Reflections.” RSQ 28, nos. 2–3 (10): 253–59. Zomlot, Husam. “Building a State under Occupation” [in Arabic]. MA 33, no. 375 (May 10): 112–30. ———. “Building a State under Occupation: The Palestinians and the Living Legacy of Oslo.” CAA 3, no. 2 (Apr. 10): 180–92.
Topic:: International Relations and Economics
Political Geography:: Israel, Asia, and France

385. The Palestinians in Israel and Operation Cast Lead: A View from Haifa

Author:: Hisham Naffa'
Publication Date:: 05-2009
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: A Few Hours After Israel launched its assault on the occupied Gaza Strip on Saturday, 27 December 2008, two large crowds of angry demonstrators set out from different points of the Galilee town of Nazareth, the “Capital of the Arabs in Israel.” Supporters of the Communist party and affiliated coalitions carried red banners along with Palestinian flags, while the Islamist demonstrators carried green banners interspersed with the national flag. Both loudly proclaimed their identification with Gaza and their rejection of Israel's military crimes against the Palestinian people of Gaza. Eventually the two demonstrations converged on Nazareth's main street at the very spot where, a few years earlier, a bitter controversy with sectarian overtones had raged over the Muslim shrine of Shihab al-Din, adjacent to the Basilica of the Annunciation. But on this evening in late December, when the two groups commingled, memories of ideological difference and controversy were swept aside by feelings of solidarity and common purpose. Leaders from the various parties took turns addressing the demonstration, and their message was the same as the shouts that went up from the crowd: “Stop the massacre against our people in Gaza!”
Political Geography:: Israel and Arabia

386. Operation Cast Lead in the West Bank

Author:: Robert Blecher
Publication Date:: 05-2009
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Palestinians Were Glued to al-Jazeera during the three weeks of Operation Cast Lead, which had killed 1,430 Gazans and wounded another 5,300 by the time Israel and Hamas declared cease-fires on 18 January 2009. The television screen was about as close as most West Bankers got to entering the fray. Despite the ferocity of the assault, the Jewish state's eastern flank remained largely quiet, if tensely so. The West Bank saw a single daylong strike (a second followed in East Jerusalem), a series of demonstrations in the larger cities, and a few scattered clashes with Israeli troops, which resulted in a handful of deaths. But security coordination between the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority (PA) and Israel continued apace, and while diplomatic negotiations formally were suspended “in light of the circumstances,” as a senior PA official put it, they were not severed.
Political Geography:: Israel

387. Made in the U.S.A.: American Military Aid to Israel

Author:: Frida Berrigan
Publication Date:: 05-2009
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Enforcement of U.S. law concerning weapons exports and the disbursement of military aid are subject to highly politicized interpretations of concepts like "legitimate self-defense" and "safeguarding internal security." As illustrated by Israel's July 2006 war in Lebanon and its 2008-2009 Operation Cast Lead in Gaza, Washington has essentially allowed Israel to define "self-defense" however it chooses. This overview of U.S. military aid to Israel, including weapons sales and related support of its domestic military industrial complex, examines in detail the mechanisms through which aid is funneled, the restrictions on aid that do exist, and the uses to which U.S. military aid has been put-particularly in terms of Israel's military operations and its exports abroad. Frida Berrigan is senior program associate of the Arms and Security Initiative at the New America Foundation in Washington, DC.
Topic:: Law
Political Geography:: United States, America, Washington, Israel, and Gaza

388. Gaza's Humanitarianism Problem

Author:: Ilana Feldman
Publication Date:: 05-2009
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: This essay explores the possible negative consequences of identifying the current situation in Gaza primarily as a humanitarian problem. Scholarship on the complicated effects of humanitarian action in general, the early history of humanitarian intervention in the lives of Palestinians, and the current politics of aid in Gaza all underscore these problems. The essay reflects on several aspects of what can be called the "humanitarianism problem" in Gaza by considering both how humanitarianism is sometimes deployed as a strategy for frustrating Palestinian aspirations and the often unintended political effects of the most well-intentioned humanitarian interventions.
Topic:: Humanitarian Aid
Political Geography:: Palestine and Gaza

389. Israel's Assault on Gaza: A Transformational Moment? An Interview with Azmi Bishara

Author:: Mouin Rabbani
Publication Date:: 05-2009
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Azmi Bishara (b. 1956 in Nazareth), an Israeli Arab politician and academic, earned a doctorate in philosophy from Humboldt University in Berlin in 1986 and for the next ten years was professor of philosophy at Birzeit University; he was also associated with the Van Leer Institute in Jerusalem as a senior researcher. Politics, however, occupied him from an early age. In 1974, while still in high school, he established the first National Committee of Arab High School Students; two years later he was instrumental in founding the first National Arab Student Union, which he represented in the Committee for the Defense of Arab Lands when it declared Land Day in 1976. Bishara has been a dominant force in Israeli Arab politics since 1995, when he was a principal founder of the National Democratic Assembly (Tajamu` in Arabic, Balad in Hebrew), a "democratic progressive national party for the Palestinian citizens of Israel." He was elected to the Israeli Knesset for the first time in 1996-and in all subsequent elections through 2006-under the banner of the National Democratic Assembly, which soon became the spearhead of the national movement for the Palestinian community in Israel with its demands for cultural autonomy, recognition as a national minority, and equal rights. Within a few years, the slogan Bishara coined, "Israel as a state for all its citizens," had become a mainstream demand and the rallying cry of Israel's Palestinian community. A self-described Arab nationalist, Bishara has long been a thorn in the side of the Israeli establishment. Attempts to rein him in began in earnest in November 2001, when, following a visit to Syria and speeches supporting the right of people under occupation to resist, the Knesset revoked his immunity as a member of the Knesset, opening the way for a criminal indictment against him. The Israeli High Court dismissed the indictment in April 2003 and Bishara's parliamentary immunity was restored, but other actions followed. The National Democratic Assembly, was twice banned (in 2003 and 2006) from participating in parliamentary elections by Israel's Central Elections Committee. (The ban was lifted both times by the High Court, and both times the party won three seats.) Following Israel's 2006 Lebanon war, Bishara became the subject of a high-level security probe. Although he vigorously rejected allegations of "passing information to the enemy at time of war" as politically motivated fabrications, he resigned his Knesset seat and went into exile in April 2007. In spring 2009, a bill was introduced in the Knesset that, if passed, will allow the state to strip him of his citizenship. Since leaving Israel, Bishara divides his time between Amman, Jordan, and Doha, Qatar. In addition to writing (he has published three books in recent years), he is a prominent commentator on regional and international affairs in the Arab media and satellite TV and holds the Gamal Abdel Nasser Chair for Arab Thought at the Center for Arab Unity Studies in Beirut. He was interviewed in English in Doha on 17 February 2009 by Mouin Rabbani, an Amman-based independent analyst and a senior fellow of the Institute for Palestine Studies.
Political Geography:: Israel, Palestine, and Gaza

390. Voting for Apartheid: The 2009 Israeli Elections

Author:: Oren Yiftachel
Publication Date:: 05-2009
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Focusing primarily on Israeli voter attitudes with respect to the Zionist-Palestinian conflict, this paper argues that the results of the 2009 elections highlight the structural entanglement of Israeli politics within a colonialist process of "creeping apartheid" not only in the West Bank but in Israel proper. The elections also demonstrated the continuing relevance of identity and class politics among Israeli voters and the trend among culturally and economically marginalized groups to support the colonialist agendas set mainly by the settlers, the military, and parts of the globalizing economic elites. In parallel, election results among Palestinians in Israel reflect their growing alienation from a political system that structurally excludes them from political influence. Oren Yiftachel is professor of political geography, urban planning, and public policy at Ben-Gurion University, Beersheba, and the author of a number of books, including Ethnocracy: Land and Identity Politics in Israel/Palestine (Penn Press, 2006).
Topic:: Economics
Political Geography:: Israel

391. Shooting Gaza: Photographers, Photographs, and the Unbearable Lightness of War

Author:: Peter Lagerquist
Publication Date:: 05-2009
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Barred entry to Gaza during Operation Cast Lead, Western photojournalists and TV crews found themselves confined to the Israeli side of the border during the assault, peering along the barrels of IDF artillery. The following essay reflects on what was said and heard among them on a sunny day in January 2009, how they and local Israeli spectators related to the violence, and how these two perspectives were tacitly elided in photographs of the war.
Topic:: War
Political Geography:: Israel and Gaza

392. Lead-Up to Cast Lead: Gaza at a Glance

Publication Date:: 05-2009
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Inhabited from the 4th millennium B.C., and later a strategic and commercial crossroads linking Egypt and Mesopotamia (and Africa and the Arabian Peninsula), Gaza became the center of one of the 16 districts of Mandate Palestine under British rule in 1922. The Gaza Strip constitutes that part of Palestine held by the Egyptian forces at the end of the 1948 Palestine war and then administered by Egypt from the signing of the 1949 Egyptian-Israeli Armistice Agreement to the June 1967 war. The Strip comprised 1.3% of Mandate Palestine, 27% of the Mandate's Gaza district. Israel occupied the Gaza Strip during the June 1967 war. In 1994, the Palestinian Authority assumed territorial and civilian jurisdiction over the Gaza Strip (except for the settlements and military areas) under the Gaza-Jericho agreement, signed that year by Israel and the PLO. Israel unilaterally withdrew all military installations and settlements from the Gaza Strip in August–September 2005, but retained control of airspace, territorial waters, and entry and exit points; consequently, it remains the occupying power.
Political Geography:: Israel and Egypt

393. A Gaza Chronology: 1948-2009

Publication Date:: 05-2009
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Journal of Palestine Studies, Vol. 38, no. 3, p. 98
Political Geography:: Palestine and Gaza

394. Israeli Military Operations against Gaza, 2000–2008

Publication Date:: 05-2009
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Journal of Palestine Studies, Vol. 38, no. 3, p. 122
Political Geography:: Israel, Palestine, and Gaza

395. Photos

Publication Date:: 05-2009
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Journal of Palestine Studies, Vol. 38, no. 3, p. 172
Political Geography:: Palestine

396. The Israeli Arsenal Deployed Against Gaza During Operation Cast Lead

Publication Date:: 05-2009
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The gross disparity between the military resources available to Israel and the Palestinian factions during Operation Cast Lead (OCL) could make a comparison between their two “arsenals” seem absurd. Yet this and the following document devoted to Palestinian weaponry not only highlight the imbalance but help the reader better appreciate the dynamics at play in the broader conflict.
Political Geography:: Israel, Palestine, and Gaza

397. Day-by-Day Casualties, Israeli Sorties, and Palestinian Missiles Fired

Publication Date:: 05-2009
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The data below were compiled by IPS Senior Research Associate Michele K. Esposito based on a survey of available sources. Sources for each day are listed in the Chronology section in this issue of JPS and in the notes below, which explain in detail how the figures were derived.
Political Geography:: Israel and Palestine

398. Palestinian Casualties by Status and Region (chart)

Publication Date:: 05-2009
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Journal of Palestine Studies, Vol. 38, no. 3, p. 207
Political Geography:: Palestine

399. Esber: Under the Cover of War: The Zionist Expulsion of the Palestinians

Author:: Nur Masalha
Publication Date:: 05-2009
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: The Nakba—a mini-holocaust for the Palestinians—is a key point in the history of Palestine and Israel: In 1948, a country and its people disappeared from international maps and dictionaries. The Nakba resulted in the destruction of much of Palestinian society, and much of the Arab and Islamic landscape was obliterated by the Israeli state—a state created by a an settler-colonial community that immigrated into Palestine in the period between 1882 and 1948. About 90 percent of the Palestinians were ethnically cleansed from the territory occupied by Israel in 1948–49—many by psychological warfare, a large number at gunpoint. After 1948, the historic Arabic names of geographical sites were replaced by newly coined Hebrew names, some of which resembled biblical names.
Topic:: War
Political Geography:: Russia, Europe, Israel, and Palestine

400. Hammad: breaking poems

Author:: Marcy Jane Knopf-Newman
Publication Date:: 05-2009
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:: Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:: Occupied lands for Israel without incorporating the people on the land—the Palestinians. This set in motion a set of practices—expropriation of land, expansion of settlements (all of them illegal), and erection of walls to prevent Palestinians from reaching their lands—that collectively constitute occupation. Palestinians in the territories thus have become outsiders who are denied access to the “inside.” Walls and Israeli roads should be understood “as an effect rather than a cause” (p. 30); the real problem is the occupation itself, which demands such practices. This has led to the division of the West Bank into “three or four large pieces, plus East Jerusalem” (p. 57). These divisions, of both Palestinians and their lands, have been codified by the Oslo negotiations, which also produced a compliant Palestinian leadership incapable of advancing the national rights of Palestinians.
Political Geography:: Palestine and Jerusalem

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