Not illegal enough

The Jerusalem Post, February 19, 2010 Like many Israeli students her age, Criselle, 16, is planning to travel with her class to Poland. Her journey isn’t without obstacle, however. Criselle, the daughter of Filipino workers, might be unable to re-enter Israel when she returns because she is without legal status. Criselle is part of the …

Young Israeli women follow their consciences into prison

The National, November 14, 2009 At a time when most Israeli girls her age are fantasizing about their post-army travels, Emelia Markovich, 19, is considering the jail time that looms ahead. Markovich is a member of a group of shministim, Hebrew for 12th graders. But these shministim aren’t your average high school students. They are …

Israel targeting the boycott movement

The Electronic Intifada, November 9, 2009 Is Israel threatened by the BDS movement? Maan News Agency, November 11, 2009 For over six weeks now Mohammed Othman, a prominent Palestinian activist and an outspoken advocate of the nonviolent boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement, has been held in an Israeli military prison without charges. On 22 …

Israeli blockade strangling Gaza agriculture

The Electronic Intifada, October 29, 2009 Recently, Israel announced that it would import palm fronds from the Gaza Strip for the Jewish holiday of Sukkot. The move came at the behest of Minister of Religious Services, Yakov Margi, who feared that a shortage of palm fronds and a local monopoly on the item would send …

Village a symbol of resistance

The National, October 31, 2009 Hebrew translation: here. Every Friday, as midday prayers draw to a close, a few dozen protestors meet outside Bilin’s humble mosque. From there, they march though the village, calling for an end to Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories. By the time they enter a thin, dusty grove of olive …

Tel Avivians have a headache

 Tel Avivians have a headache Zeek at Jewcy.com, June 2, 2009 On a recent Friday night, Tel Aviv ran out of the Israeli equivalent of Tylenol. A killer migraine throbbing away, I went to not one, not two, but six grocery stores in search of relief. “What’s going on in this city?” a clerk asked …

Chronicles of a Refugee, a documentary review

 Chronicles of a Refugee, a documentary review Maan News Agency, May 6, 2009 “Do you know what the problem  is?” Nadine, a young Palestinian woman asks an off-screen interviewer.  She continues, “It’s that the Palestinian has the ability to forgive…  If you, as an Israeli, killed his mother and father and his family,  he [the …