Occupied Territory
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From October, Israel will be able to kill vaccinated children
Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General of UNRWA, reports that hundreds of thousands of Gaza’s children – 90% coverage – have received the first of two required polio vaccinations. The second round should take place at the end of September. So, come, say October/November, Israel will find comfort in the knowledge that the Gazan children it will continue Continue reading
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Israel’s PR problem: Itself
The problem for proponents of Israel as a ‘normal’ state, is Israel itself. Over the past eleven months, Israel’s murderous, ethnic cleansing in Gaza, and now escalating in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, have been displayed on our screens for all to see. It is not a good look to destroy hospitals, kill and Continue reading
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Cry Justice! A trashed international rules-based system
If ever there were an international rules-based system, it is trashed now. Drained of authority and meaning, it is singularly unable to do what it is supposed to do. The Geneva Conventions, upon which the rule of law is supposedly based, their high-principled intent now made mockery. Even as their courts pass judgment on Israel’s Continue reading
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Israel and its uncritical proponents: a danger to Jews
Jews genuinely concerned about antisemitism are ill-served by the Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) for its actions and approach are more likely to engender antisemitism than to counter it. This is because its main function is to protect and promote the foremost generator of antisemitism, the State of Israel. It is joined in this enterprise by Continue reading
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Playing with death – Palestinian childhoods
Traditionally, this site has been concerned with children and their freedoms. More recently, it has also focused on the conflict in Palestine/Israel. The two subjects distressingly combine in todays’s Daily Telegraph report. Something hidden, obscured or ignored now starkly highlighted: More children than Palestinian fighters are being killed in the offensive on Gaza. The name, Continue reading
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2019 Eurovision Song Contest – Songwashing occupation, discrimination, apartheid
Tel Aviv is to host the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest What’s Tel Aviv like? This from Business Insider: ‘From the Mediterranean shores of Tel Aviv, Israel’s fraught geopolitical position is almost non-existent. Tourists and locals alike sip Goldstar, Israel’s ubiquitous dark lager, as the waves roll in and out. Children laugh and splash in the Continue reading
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Palestine/Israel: Reflections on a visit
Extract: War on Want Briefing to MPs Israel’s use of military force against Palestinian civilians is a prominent feature of its occupation regime. This militarised repression of the Palestinian people extends beyond the scenes of checkpoints and bombings we have unfortunately become accustomed to; Israel’s military and security services maintain an intense regime of surveillance, Continue reading
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Palestine/Israel: What oppression looks like
I have just returned from a trip to Palestine/Israel. My purpose: to understand more; to interview/have conversations with people; to report back to those who might already be interested and, fond hope, to encourage more widespread interest – and action. The bulk of my time was spent in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT), taking the Continue reading
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Another Israeli state violation now, and a harbinger of more to come
The proposed demolition of Khan Al-Ahmar – a violation now, and a harbinger of more to come This article has just been published on the ICAHD UK (Israel Committee Against House Demolition, UK) web site. I would urge you to take a look at the web site as a whole. The website also announces an Continue reading
About Me
This is Bernard Spiegal’s blog.
I write mainly about Palestine/Israel and related issues; sometimes other stuff too
Bernard Spiegal 