Feature Archives

Video cameras have become a crucial way for Palestinians to document the daily harassment inflicted on them by Israeli settlers. In one recent example, a Palestinian family living on the southern hills of Al-Halil, was attacked by four settlers armed with baseball bats while farming their land. The video provided evidence against two settlers, who were arrested by the Israeli police.

May 2008 marked 60 years of the Nakba, the catastrophe. Sixty years ago, 700,000 Palestinians were expelled from their homes and 350 Palestinian villages were destroyed by the Israeli army and militias. In the Bay Area, the Nakba was commemorated by numerous events and demonstrations. On May 10th at the Civic Center, a peace and solidarity festival took place with bands such as the Coup and Dam. Jewish groups also organized solidarity actions. The International Jewish Solidarity Network has circulated a statement calling on people not to celebrate, and Jewish Voice for Peace called on Americans to remember the thousands of Palestinians who have suffered in the creation of Israel. The IJSN disrupted an event at San Francisco's JCC called "Israel at Sixty."

Friday, May 30, 2008 :Professor Norman Finkelstein, an American Jewish scholar known for his trenchant criticism of Israeli policy, was detained and interrogated by Israels security forces for 24 hours at Tel Avivs Ben Gurion airport on May 23, denied entry into Israel and deported back to Amsterdam where he had been lecturing. He has also been banned from entering Israel for 10 years, for so-called “security reasons.” The Israeli newspaper Ha’aretz has published an editorial criticizing the Israeli government’s decision to ban American academic Norman Finkelstein from entering the country.

Monday, May 12, 2008: In Lebanon, armed clashes over the past week have left at least 81 dead. Fighting erupted last week during a general strike called by the General Federation of Labor Unions to protest the high cost of living. On May 8th, Hezbollah leader Nasrallah held a press conference in Beirut and condemned a decision by the Lebanese cabinet to outlaw Hezbollah's telecommunication network and dismiss the head of Airport security for his alleged ties to the party. Nasrallah said their private communication network was critical to their success during the July 2006 war with Israel. Hezbollah-led opposition forces quickly overpowered pro-government militias and took over large parts of the capital city of Beirut before handing over control to the Lebanese army.

In the past week, Israel has mounted a massive offensive against the Gaza Strip. The attacks have claiming the lives of over 112 Palestinians, including many civilians. The clashes reached a peak on March 1st, when Israel sent in a regiment of ground troops killing 77 Palestinians in two days. According to Gaza health ministry statistics, 22 children were killed and more than 350 people were wounded. On March 3rd, Students for Justice in Palestine staged a die-in in Berkeley to protest Israel's actions.

From February 4th through the 8th, Students for Justice in Palestine held a series of protests and teach-in as part of Israeli Apartheid Week at UC Berkeley. On February 6th there was a rally on Sproul Plaza with Barbara Lubin from Middle East Children's Alliance and other community leaders.

Emergency protests across the US against the strangulation of Gaza were called for Friday January 25th. A San Francisco protest took place on at the Israeli Consulate from 4-5 PM.

On January 23rd, masked militants destroyed around two-thirds of the wall separating the Gaza Strip from Egypt. Tens of thousands of Palestinians flooded across the border to buy food and supplies. On January 25, Egyptian border guards formed human chains along the border, but were unable to stop hundreds of Palestinians from rushing into Egypt after a bulldozer wrecked another section of fence.