A sobering account of how hatred begets hatred and any sympathy or humanity towards Palestinians is treated as naivete or treason.
Israeli journalist Nir Hasson reports in Haaretz how his appeal for donations to Gazan families now suffering during the rain was met with vindictive joy at their suffering.
Why, despite its important role in history more generally in the last half century, oral history has played little part in the writing of British Jewish history is the subject of Joseph Finlay’s talk, linked to below.
It is not in the interests of communal organisations to seeking out evidence that contradicts their narrative of Zionism as an essential part of Jewish identity and Finlay calls for a new Jewish history from below which captures the reality more clearly.
By Leah Levane
Beyond the crucial task of international solidarity with those in the USA protesting ICE and doing their utmost to protect likely targets of ICE, there are lessons for us here. Farage is keen to have a similar force here – even if they will not be armed. We already have a government boating about how much better they are at deporting people than the Tories were do feeding the vile rhetoric of Farage and also of the likes of Tommy Robinson.
Julian Borger, the Guardian’s senior international correspondent does not hold back in his condemnation of Trump’s Board of Pece.
It was bad enough when endorsed by the United Nations Security Council, with no reference to UN principles of self-determination and national sovereignty and against colonialism.
Trump has adulterated it further…
By Leah Levane
The boycott of Israeli produce has strengthened in the face of the genocide in Gaza and is having a deep financial impact, especially on Israeli farmers. Those of us who support the peaceful policy of Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) will welcome this and remain shocked that Israel is still not subject to government level divestment and sanctions.
This collection of essays by Prof Avi Shlaim, perhaps the foremost living Israeli historian today, is published by The Irish Pages Press.
To date there has not been a single such English print review, despite sending out at least 40 review copies to all relevant publications and editors, some on multiple occasions.
It deserves better and we review it here.
Jewish Currents has just reposted this article which it first carried in 2019.
It is highly topical.
Greg Afinogenov’s argument is not about how much worse things have become in recent years (they have) but rather the need to face the central question: is there such a thing as a border that is both strong and just?
The hypocrisy surrounding the political and media faux frenzy over Birmingham Police Chief’s decision to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from the game against Aston Villa last October is nauseating.
Palestinian political analyst and playwright Ahmed Majar pulls no punches in his short article.
By Leah Levane
Israel seems determined to destroy rural Palestinian communities through displacement regardless of the devastating impact on those communities. In this the government is aided and abetted by settler violence who almost invariably go unpunished. Palestinians have been killed and huge numbers of olive trees destroyed. In addition there have been direct attacks that have made the lives of the farming and herding communities desperate if not impossible. Families that sold olive oil are now having to buy it with last year’s harvest yielding only 7,000 tonnes of oil compared with 27,000 tonnes in 2024.
By Leah Levane
The Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention has issued a furious and detailed statement focused on the German response to what Israel has been doing in Gaza but, as noted within this piece. much of the criticism applies to many other nations, not least the UK. There is here a particular focus on the ways that Civil Society organisations contribute to German denial of Gaza experiencing a genocide.