As the Palestinian Delegation gears up to make their case for Palestinian statehood at the United Nations, Yonatan Touval makes an interesting proposal in his New York Times piece to work towards a Security Counsel Resolution rather than General Assembly recognition.
Spotted by Daniel Lubetzky, by Julianna Storch
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Ambassador Dennis Ross examines the conflict in Gaza from all sides, pinpointing the pivotal position that Egypt plays in fueling or ending the current violence in the region. See Ambassador Ross’s full Daily News opinion piece after the jump.
Spotted by Daniel Lubetzky, by Julianna Storch
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The Jerusalem Post Blog published often misreported facts about Hamas’s hand in harming the people of the Gaza Strip. See more details about Hamas’s tactics that put its civilians in harm’s way after the jump.
Spotted by Daniel Lubetzky, by Julianna Storch
Daniel and the One Voice team met with President Abbas in Ramallah on Daniel’s recent trip to the Middle East. During their visit, Daniel and the One Voice team briefed President Abbas on their efforts to couple the One Voice grassroots movement with economic development in the region to create positive facts on the ground in Israel and Palestine. The president’s blog reports that President Abbas thanked Daniel for his tireless efforts to achieve peace between the Palestinian and Israeli peoples, stressing the importance of these projects to the achievement of peace in the region.
By Julianna Storch
John Lyndon from One Voice Europe spotted and shared the article below. While the conflict does deeply impact the broader region and it is vital to end the occupation for the sake of Palestinians AND Israelis and the entire region, this is a refreshing perspective about the benefits that moving to end the conflict will bring to the Arab people as well.
Daniel made a presentation to a supporter for a new plan for peace in the Middle East. After their meeting, she forwarded him the following piece of wisdom from an old Jewish man, leading him to believe that perhaps he was not so persuasive.
Spotted by Daniel Lubetzky, by Julianna Storch
Wisdom from an Old Jewish Man
A journalist heard about a very old Jewish man who had been going to the Western Wall to pray, twice a day, every day, for a long, long time.
So she went to check it out. She went to the Western Wall and there he was, walking slowly up to the holy site.
She watched him pray and after about 45 minutes, when he turned to leave, using a cane and moving very slowly, she approached him for an interview.
“Pardon me, sir, what’s your name?
“Morris Feinberg,” he replied.
“Sir, how long have you been coming to the Western Wall and praying?”
“For about 60 years.”
“60 years! That’s amazing! What do you pray for?”
“I pray for peace between the Christians, Jews, and the Muslims.”
“I pray for all the wars and all the hatred to stop.”
“I pray for all our children to grow up safely as responsible adults and to love their fellow man.”
“I pray that politicians tell us the truth and put the interests of the people ahead of their own interests.”
“How do you feel after doing this for 60 years?”
“Like I’m talking to a wall.”
Zahava Gal-On, chief of Israeli political party Meretz, presented her peace plan to replace the Oslo Accords. In her plan, outlined in the Haaretz piece below, Gal-On recognizes the benefit to Israel of recognizing a Palestinian state and aims to help the Palestinian state gain acceptance in the UN.
Spotted by Daniel Lubetzky, by Julianna Storch
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In Thomas Friedman’s poignant New York Times piece this week, he asked Muslim demonstrators wreaking havoc at our embassies abroad to “look in the mirror.” Many outraged demonstrators are claiming, “We never insult any prophet — not Moses, not Jesus — so why can’t we demand that Muhammad be respected?” Friedman responds by first clarifying that no matter how offensive the insult, it does not warrant attacks and murders of innocent people. Second, he points out the hypocrisy in the demonstrators’ outcry and proceeds to list the many ways in which Sunni Muslims around the world have disrespected and insulted religions of all types in recent years. We could all benefit from looking in our mirrors and give greater respect to others, but as Friedman points out, it is the responsibility of government and the media to condemn those who spew hateful rhetoric. And in America, we are fortunate to see exactly that in our reflection.
Spotted by Daniel Lubetzky, by Julianna Storch
After a deadly attack at the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, followed by attacks on the U.S. Embassies in Sana’a and Cairo this week, the media widely reported the catalyst to be an anti-Islam film created by Jewish Israeli-American Sam Bacile. Bacile, at the center of this global controversy, claimed that 100 Jewish donors provided him with $5 million to finance the film in order to help Israel. As the JTA uncovers, the creator of the film, is neither Jewish nor Israeli; rather, he is an Egyptian Chrisitian living in California named Nakoula Basseley Nakoula. Despite recent reports revealing the filmmaker’s true identity, his widely publicized alias and lie resonated around the Middle East and will endanger Jews assigned with blame as a result.
Spotted by Daniel Lubetzy, by Julianna Storch
In the New Yorker’s online News Desk David Remnick draws attention to the damage done by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the international stage with his “Neocon Strategy.” He specifically criticizes the way in which Netanyahu has inserted himself into American politics with derision of Obama and an alliance with Romney.
Spotted by Daniel Lubetzky, by Julianna Storch