Tag Archives: Abbas

It is Chanukah and for eight nights we will light our lights, one more each night. Ideally we light them in a window or out in a public place. Credit: iStockPhoto/Fevzi Ryman Why?  To broadcast the miracles.  According to our traditions, there were two: The Talmud relates the story of …

Some observations: – There has been a consistent pattern to the “peace process” for 100 years from when the Palestine Arab Executive Committee met in 1921 and declared – “Either us or the Zionists.  There is no room for both” Some form of partition is proposed, the Jewish people go with …

Unsurprisingly, in the aftermath of the assassination of PIJ – known in the West as simply Palestinian Islamic Jihad, terror mastermind Bahaa Abu al Ata and his wife in an Israeli airstrike, PIJ in Gaza has stated that Israel has crossed a red line and is now at war with …

Mahmoud Abbas, also known as Abu Mazen,  in January 2005  was elected as the President of the Palestinian Authority to succeed Yasser Arafat in the West Bank and Gaza, aka Judaea and Samaria. The PLO chairman and was elected for a four-year term  after which there was ‘supposed’ to be …

I want to begin with a request for assistance for the Legal Grounds Campaign, which I co-chair.  We are running a campaign to have Israeli citizens living here in Israel sign on as members (no cost). We hope to secure a large membership base: this will increase our effectiveness as …

As in “really, really…” A report, drawing on Egyptian sources, appeared very recently in Al Araby, an Arabic newspaper in London, with regard to continuing efforts by President Al-Sisi to secure a long-term agreement between Israel and Hamas. This report, cited by YNet, indicated that Egyptian Intelligence Chief Abbas Kamel …

Whenever there is a terror attack, and lives are lost,  I post, because getting the information out is important. These attacks seem endless! Heaven forbid they should actually be so: we will prevail. But endlessly ugly?  That doesn’t even begin to describe the situation.  Obscene comes a bit closer. ~~~~~~~~~~ …

Yes, my friends, I am here. Working hard on another writing project, and laboring mightily to make sense of the news. Did you ever stand on the side of a highway, with the cars whizzing past? Hard to not feel a bit dazed. In recent days, I have been watching …

  The situation is so surreal it is difficult to know where to begin. I am not only confused and frustrated, I am livid. Once again, my friends, I advise you that what I am going to share will not all sound coherent. But there is a simple reason for …

Once again, it is quite surreal being in Israel. And on many levels. But why should this trip be any different? In Jerusalem and Tel Aviv the biggest challenge is finding a seat in overcrowded cafés or restaurants, whilst the residents of the south are still dealing with those “peaceful …

Here we are, in the midst of Chanukah celebrations, which mark miracles for the Jewish people, most significantly regarding the miracle of Jewish survival at the time of the Hasmoneans. But this holiday inspires me to think more broadly about Jewish survival. The fact that we are here, having survived …

Trump: Giving Peace ‘A Shot’ The President of the United States could have worded his failure only just a little worse. He could have ‘taken a stab’ at peace negotiations before not moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem. If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her …

“Peace for our time” a famous four word phrase from Benjamin Disraeli, who said upon returning from the Congress of Berlin in 1878, “I have returned from Germany with peace for our time”. This was echoed in a speech given on 30 September 1938 by British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain …

It’s a “normal” situation for us. We win some, we lose some. Yet, somehow, these last few days, that roller coaster ride seems to have more curves than usual. ~~~~~~~~~~ Take the UN Secretary General, António Guterres. He’d been great lately: he made a statement against the PA youth center …

On Monday afternoon, the President of the United States, Donald Trump touched down in Israel after a visit to Saudi Arabia. The flight from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to Tel Aviv, Israel was an historic one given it was the first direct flight between the two countries, which have no official diplomatic relations. Prime …

This week we will be celebrating the 69th anniversary of the re-establishment of the Jewish State – Independence Day, Yom Ha’atzmaut – preceded by Yom Hazikaron where we remember those who fell in the defence of the State of Israel. This comes on the back of efforts formalised 120 years …

When I was a kid (a million years ago), I loved to ride the waves.  I would move out to meet an incoming wave and coast up on its front surface to its foaming crest, an exhilarating experience.  I would then drop down its back surface as the wave broke …

We are back to routine after the Pesach week – and a splendid week it was in many ways. I wanted to say we are “back to normal,” but it is unclear to me precisely what constitutes “normal.” The balagan (confusion) of daily life, with its good and bad, is …

No one ever said it would be easy. When something turns out as we hoped it would, we might murmur “Fantastic!” and allow ourselves a momentary sense of ease or satisfaction. But in no time at all – bang! – we are likely to confront a stumbling block. Then we …

When last I wrote, I spoke about light behind the shadows and looking ahead to what is possible – what good may be on the way.  I meant every word, and will continue to seek the light. However, I am not a Pollyanna and I don’t for a moment intend …