Creating new perspectives since 2009
Items by Professor Kamel Hawwash
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Al-Aqsa under threat as Israeli elections loom
When Muslims first prayed, they faced Al-Aqsa Mosque and Jerusalem rather than Makkah. When Prophet Mohammed (Peace be Upon Him) ascended to heaven, he did so from Al-Aqsa, not Makkah. Muslims believe the rock from which he ascended (Mi’raj) is the same rock in the basement of the Dome...
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HSBC divests from major Israeli arms company ten years after Operation Cast Lead
It is ten years since Israel launched a major military offensive against the people of the Gaza Strip, which it called Operation Cast Lead. Israel started its bombardment on 27 December, 2008, as Palestinian children were heading home at the end of the school day. The war lasted for...
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Nikki Haley’s swansong at the UN was an embarrassment
The 6 December was the first anniversary of US President Donald Trump’s announcement that he recognised Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and that he would move the American Embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy city. The announcement was cheered by Israel and its supporters for whom international laws and...
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While Arab states normalise relations with Israel, British voters lobby MPs for Palestine
November was an extraordinary month for normalisation between Arab states and Israel. You would think that Israel had settled its disputes with its neighbours — perhaps accepting and implementing the Arab peace initiative, for example, — and that a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital was close...
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With no meaningful international plan, Khan Al-Ahmar needs a popular uprising to save it
The Palestinian Bedouin residents of Khan Al-Ahmar wake up every morning relieved that the Israeli occupation’s bulldozers did not arrive overnight to destroy their homes and their children’s school. They remain fearful, though, that it is only a matter of time before their village is destroyed and they are...
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Trump’s Administration will fail to break the Palestinians
Trump and Netanyahu are now brothers in arms in racism against the Palestinians...
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With Israel’s Nation State Law in place, violence against Palestinians will get worse
Ever since Israel passed the Nation State Law, Palestinians and neutral observers have been wondering about its possible impact on the substantial Palestinian minority in Israel as well as those living under occupation in the rest of historic Palestine. The law says that Israel is the state for Jews...
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If free speech is to mean anything at all, its principles must be applied equally
Britain’s two major political parties have been gripped by accusations that they have a problem with racism. In the case of the Labour Party, this allegedly takes the form of anti-Semitism, while in the Conservative Party, it is alleged Islamophobia. Clouding the anti-Semitism issue, somewhat, is the fact that...
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Israel challenges the world: I am an Apartheid state, what are you going to do about it?
Remember the date, 19 July 2018 is when Israel’s pretense of democracy, the Knesset passed the Nation State Bill, which could more aptly be called, the “Jewish State Apartheid Law” where Jews dominate the Israeli Palestinian Arabs who are lesser than them, even if they are citizens. I deliberately...
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Ireland’s decision to advance boycott bill could be the tipping point for justice for Palestine
The Palestinian people are in need of some good news to boost their morale at an extremely difficult time in their struggle for freedom, justice and equality. There has been little good news, particularly since US President Trump took office, recognised Jerusalem as capital of Israel, moved the US...
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Israel’s royal reward for discriminating against Palestinians
As Britain’s Prince William arrives in Israel for a royal visit that will also see him visit the Occupied Palestinian Territories, does he really understand the country upon which he is bestowing an air of normality? The same question would apply to any world leader or dignitaries making a...
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Israel’s most famous human shield is its defence minister, Avigdor Lieberman
The Israeli propaganda machine has been in full swing since 30 March when the Great Return March saw tens of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza march to the fence with Israel demanding that they be allowed to return to their home towns and villages and for an end to the...
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While Razan lost her life, Nikki Haley lost her humanity
Last Friday, 1 June, a Palestinian volunteer medic, Razan Al-Najjar, was fasting and tending to the wounded at Gaza’s artificial fence with Israel. Thousands of miles away, the US Ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, was scheming on behalf of Israel at the world body. The day ended with...
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The PNC meeting was ‘much ado about nothing’
After a 22-year lull, the highest Palestinian legislative authority of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), the Palestinian National Council (PNC), finally met in Ramallah for its 23rd session. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas faced severe criticism for holding the meeting in Ramallah, which remains under occupation, thus excluding many members...
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UNRWA, the US Embassy move and the Israeli occupation
This will be remembered as the year when the United States of America broke with the international consensus by moving its Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, thus recognising the Holy City as the capital of Israel. The deliberate timing of the move to coincide with next month’s 70th...
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The Great March of Return: An opportunity for Palestinians to return to Najd or is it Sedrot?
There is nothing like a trip to Beirut and a visit to Palestinian refugee camps to remind visitors of the nub of the Palestinian catastrophe, the Nakba which refugees continue to endure to this day. They were thrown out of their homeland simply because another people wanted to make...
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Israel, the West and shameless hypocrisy
The current crisis between Britain and Russia offers yet another example of the shameless hypocrisy of the West when dealing with Israel and almost any other country. Why bring Israel into the attempted murder of two people on the streets of Britain in which Russia, not Israel is implicated?...
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The Middle East Quartet still includes the US, so can it still play a role in the peace process?
Since US President Donald Trump’s decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and the subsequent decision to cut American funding to UNRWA and the Palestinian Authority, the Palestinian leadership in Ramallah has announced formally and repeatedly that Washington cannot continue in its traditional role as the sole sponsor of...
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The PA must rise to the dangers facing the cause or make way for new leadership
Israel’s extremist, settler-led government is on a roll. US President Donald Trump’s Christmas gift of recognising Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and his consequent surrogate bullying in the UN General Assembly on behalf of the colonialist entity has sent its leaders into a frenzy of actions that will have far-reaching...
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What options does Abbas have after that General Assembly vote?
As the dust settles on a significant week at the UN, in which America’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital was rejected roundly by the international community, the Palestinians have made a commitment not to engage with the US in any future peace talks. Where, though, can the Palestinian...
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It’s time the international community stood up for Palestinian children
Israel’s mistreatment of Palestinian children is not a new development but rather one example of its many breaches of international law and international humanitarian law. While it has in the past faced criticisms for its maltreatment of Palestinian children, particularly in relation to minors that are taken into custody...
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How long before the Israeli flag flies over Riyadh?
At a recent MEMO conference entitled “Crisis in Saudi Arabia: War Succession and Future”, I asked Professor Madawi Al-Rasheed of the London School of Economics if she thought that the Israeli flag would be flying over Riyadh within the next two years. “In terms of an Israeli flag in...
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Netanyahu is redefining ethnic cleansing not pursuing genuine peace
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is not known for missing an opportunity to push peace further into the distant future. The dust had not even settled on the Balfour Centenary, which the Palestinians marked with anger and Israel and its supporters celebrated, before Netanyahu took to the air to...
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If only Boris Johnson would write an ‘alternative’ article on the Balfour Declaration centenary
When it came to BREXIT, the now Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson wrote one article for, and another against, leaving the EU, to help him make up his mind. When this emerged, he explained it like this: “Everybody was trying to make up their minds about whether or not to...