EU Alarmed by Israel, Frustrated by Palestine
European Union actions to put a cost to Israel’s occupation are modest, but they are putting the EU on an unstoppable collision course with Israel, writes Al-Shabaka Executive Director Nadia Hijab. But will Palestine put its house in order in a coherent strategy to fulfill Palestinian rights to freedom and justice?
The Arguments Against Palestine Giving Its Refugees Citizenship
Overview The rights of Palestinian refugees have been long neglected and their suffering has been carried from generation to generation for 67 years. In his recent piece A Bold Proposal: Palestine Should Give Its Refugees Citizenship, Al-Shabaka Policy Advisor Fateh Azzam argued that the State of Palestine should confer citizenship on its stateless refugees and […]
A Bold Proposal: Palestine Should Give Its Refugees Citizenship
Palestine should confer citizenship on its stateless refugees and enter into bilateral agreements with other states to improve their situation – as citizens – wherever they reside. Al-Shabaka Policy Advisor Fateh Azzam knows this proposal has pitfalls but argues it is a powerful way to create facts on the road to freedom and rights. Read the policy brief or the executive summary.
Building a Failed State: Palestine’s Governance and Economy Delinked
Technical solutions shorn of political context have contributed to a failed state in Palestine and harmed the collective Palestinian struggle for freedom, transforming the Palestinian Authority into an NGO-like body. Al-Shabaka Policy Member Ibrahim Shikaki and Guest Author 24445 analyze the situation and suggest alternative approaches for the PA and the donor community. Read the policy brief or the executive summary.
Palestine’s Day in Court? The Unexpected Effects of ICC Action
Palestine’s membership of the International Criminal Court takes effect on April 1, 2015. What cases might the Court choose? Will Israel’s legal offensive succeed? Will the UN Security Council suspend the investigation? Al-Shabaka analyst Valentina Azarova addresses many of the misconceptions about what the ICC can and cannot do, and Palestinians should do. Read the policy brief or the executive summary.
The Joint List in Israel’s Elections: Palestinians in from the Cold?
The Joint List largely represents the Palestinian citizens of Israel. Yet will it really challenge their second-class status and prevent the erosion of the rights they still have? Al-Shabaka analysts Diana Buttu, As’ad Ghanem, and Nijmeh Ali differ as they address the problems and potential of the Joint List.
Hamas: Three Tough Hurdles in 2015
Hamas’s putative rapprochement with Iran scratches the surface of the problems facing the Islamic movement. Al-Shabaka Policy Member Bilal Shobaki zeroes in on three of Hamas’ major challenges: definitively dealing with a Charter from which it has distanced itself; reviving its base in the West Bank; and restoring it regional alliances.
In Jerusalem, “Religious War” Is Used to Cloak Colonialism
Recent clashes between Israeli settlers and Jerusalemite Palestinians have been billed as a religious war but they are the outcome of Israel’s plans to Judaize the city and empty it of its Palestinian inhabitants in its colonization of the occupied Palestinian territory. Al-Shabaka Policy Member Nur Arafeh analyzes the tools Israel is using and the Palestinian leadership vacuum that has left the defenseless population to fend for itself.
Beyond the Apartheid Analogy: Time to Reframe Our Palestinian Struggle
The frequent comparisons of Israel with Apartheid South Africa may obscure more fundamental questions Palestinians should be asking. From her present base in today’s South Africa, where “whiteness” still lives on the back of “blackness”, Al-Shabaka Policy Member Irene Calis argues that the post-Apartheid moment should alert Palestinians to take stock and reframe both the form of their campaigns as well as the terms of any proposed resolution.
