Opinion
Israel Won't Attack Iran Without US Approval
Israel has not set a date to attack Iran's nuclear facilities and will not do so without US backing, says Yossi Melman.
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Thinking Through Military Action Against Iran
Patrick Clawson and Michael Eisenstadt discuss diplomatic and military options in the ongoing crisis over Iran's nuclear program.
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Leading Academic Boycott Opponent Resigns from UCU
Eve Garrard, a leading British academic and trenchant critic of the academic boycott, has resigned from the UCU over its recent boycott resolution.
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Facing up to the Naqba
The Palestinian people did undergo a catastrophe - or naqba - but responsibility lies with their own leadership; now the world must urgently address the rights of both Palestinian refugees and those Jews driven from Arab countries, says Irwin Cotler.
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Sarkozy in Israel: Reviewing the French Press
On Z Word's blog, Elif Kayi translates and analyzes some of the comments in the French press on President Sarkozy's recent visit to Israel.
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Iran: Sticks Then Carrots
Tough new sanctions on Iran imposed by the EU need to be followed up with diplomatic incentives to persuade Tehran to abandon its nuclear program, says The New York Times.
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Israel May Not Be Bluffing
Israel may or may not be bluffing about the prospect of an attack on Iran's nuclear facilities - toughter sacntions are needed to avert military action, says The Economist.
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The "New Palestinians"
Nicholas Kristof on a new refugee diaspora in the Middle East, largely ignored thusfar, but with the potential for devastating impact.
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Zimbabwe, Israel and the Left
Z Word's blog asks why the energy which drives left-wing anti-Israel campaigns is absent when it comes to Zimbabwe.
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Jews in the Arab World
Z Word's blog on how a BBC report downplays the suffering of Jews from Arab countries as Jewish organizations convene in London for a conference on the issue.
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Assessing the Second Intifada
There are many lessons to be drawn from the second intifada, not least the high price paid by ordinary Palestinians for a strategy that brought them nothing, says Sever Plocker.
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Cohen Debates Lerman on Anti-Zionism
By permission of CQ Global Researcher, which has recently produced a special issue on antisemitism obtainable here,
Z Word's blog republishes a debate between Ben Cohen and Antony Lerman
on the relationship between anti-Zionism and antisemitism.
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A Tahdiya, Not a Hudna
Hamas regards the temporary ceasefire around Gaza as a tahdiya (a basic ceasefire), not a hudna (a truce which would recognize the other side's legitimacy), argues Jonathan D. Halevi.
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Israel and the EU: A New Era
Despite the objections of Arab countries and some NGOs, both Israel and the EU understand the advantages of an upgrade in ties, says the Jerusalem Post.
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Americans and the Jewish State
In a major essay for Foreign Affairs, Walter Russell Mead examines why US policy in the Middle East reflects the "power of public opinion."
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Ahmadinejad: Saying What He Really Means
Attempts to excuse Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's exhortations for the elimination of Israel as mere calls for "regime change" are exposed in this new report from the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs.
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Lies, Damn Lies and the UCU
Z Word's blog reports on the denial, evasion and duplicity which mark the arguments of supporters of the academic boycott.
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Have They Gone Too Far?
Haviv Rettig on signs of a backlash against anti-Zionist ideas and activism.
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Israel Boycott Campaign Spreads
Z Word's blog looks at recent boycott activism in the UK, Ireland and Canada and finds that a politics of narcissism underlies these initiatives.
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The Hijacking of Britain
Israel's Ambassador to the UK, Ron Prosor, argues that the UCU's renewed academic boycott reflects the increasing prevalence of radical anti-Israel sentiment in British public discourse.
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Sanctions, Not War
An attack on Iran could result in a disaster which leaves the country's nuclear program intact - financial pressure on Tehran is a better route, argues the The New York Times.
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Warren or Mahmoud?
There are two views of Israel's future: Warren Buffett's and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's. And it's Buffett who's on the money, says Thomas Friedman.
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Churchill and Zionism
Two news books examine Winston Churchill's relationship with the Zionist movement and the project of building a Jewish state.
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Iran's Nuclear Game
As fear over Iran's nuclear capabilities increases, Z Word's blog examines two recent, and important, contributions on the vital question of what to do - and what is likely to be done.
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Why Israel Advocacy Succeeds in the US
Pro-Israel groups succeed not because they strongarm the US Administration, but because very large numbers of Americans share their aims, argues Gerard Baker.
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The UCU: A Moral Cesspit
"The only good reason for anyone now to belong to UCU is to exert themselves to
take it back from the boycotters," says University of Manchester Professor Norman Geras.
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Israel's Search for Security
Sixty years after its foundation, and despite facing myriad security threats, Israel has taken its place in the community of states, argues Gerald Steinberg.
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The UCU's Disgrace
The UCU "is a disgrace as an organization that purports to defend its members against
discrimination," says Shalom Lappin.
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Fighting the UCU Boycott
Z Word's blog reacts to the UCU's boycott vote and links to the vital arguments against the academic boycott of Israelis.
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Why Olmert Must Resign
The Olmert affair is both a warning
and an opportunity for a country mired in corruption and moral decline, says Yossi Klein Halevi.
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Demons Past and Present
A "disturbing ambiguity" in Europe's relationship with the past impacts its attitude towards Israel, says Emanuele Ottolenghi.
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Iran Fails the Test: What Next?
What will be the consequences of Tehran's refusal to cooperate with international monitoring of its nuclear program, asks The Washington Post.
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Antisemitism in Indonesia
Antisemitism is rife among Indonesian Muslims: the challenge lies in eliminating the religious teachings which promote it, says Ahmad Junaidi.
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"Our Generation's Spanish Civil War"
Terry Glavin on why Afghanistan matters - and why so much of the left has got it wrong.
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The Art of Negotiating
Talks should be held with Tehran "to see if we can change Iran's behavior, and to make clear we are not the problem. Their pursuit of nuclear weapons is," says Dennis Ross.
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Up, Up and Away: The Rise in Oil Prices
Oil could soon be priced at $200 per barrel. The Economist examines why - and what might be done about it.
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Not Antisemitism, But Anti-Communism
Some nationalist historians are portraying the antisemitic violence in Poland after World War II as a reaction to the apparent "transgressions of Jewish communists," writes Laurence Weinbaum.
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South Africa Scarred
Z Word's blog on how deadly racist violence in South Africa has not diverted the attention of those politicians pushing the canard of Israeli "apartheid."
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Israel-Syria Talks: Why Now?
Economic pressure and worries about Lebanon and an over-reliance on Iran are pushing Syria to the negotiating table, says Amir Taheri.
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Hitler Sent By God, Says Hagee
A political storm has erupted over remarks about the Holocaust and the formation of the State of Israel made by the evangelical preacher, John Hagee.
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In Praise of Avram Grant
Z Word's blog pays tribute to the Israeli coach of English soccer team Chelsea, after a season in which he endured antisemitic harassment.
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Goodbye to the European Left?
Neoconservatism may be in trouble in America, but a new conservatism is taking hold across Europe, presenting a positive opportunity for Israel, argue Yossi Shain and Peter Berkowitz.
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Palestinian Academics Push Antisemitism
The Palestinian Authority has co-opted Palestinian academia into a virulent campaign to delegitimize Israel through the promotion of antisemitism, say Itamar Marcus and Barbara Crook.
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Israel's "American Problem"
"Unthinking" American support for Israel actually hurts the Jewish state, argues Jeffrey Goldberg.
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Reflecting on Anti-Zionism Down Under
Philip Mendes considers the parallels between antisemitism and anti-Zionism from an Australian perspective.
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Assessing Iranian Ambitions
Israel's Deputy PM Lt. Gen. Shaul Mofaz gives a wide-ranging lecture at YIISA, Yale University's research institute on antisemitism (video).
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Keep Lebanon Together
"Hezbollah cannot continue to rule a separate state within a bogus state," says The Economist in a leader article.
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Hate on Campus
Freedom of speech means that University Presidents have a duty to challenge antisemitism and extremism on campus, says Brian Levin.
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The Iran Lobby
Influential voices in Germany are pressing for a strategic partnership with Iran: and that means accepting Tehran's nuclear ambitions, warns Matthias Kuentzel.
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Hamas's Forked Tongue
Assurances from some Hamas leaders that their organization is not antisemitic can't be squared with its active promotion of antisemitism, says Alan Johnson.
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UK Antisemitism Report: One Year On
A progress report from the UK government following its earlier response to the milestone All-Party Inquiry into Antisemitism.
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Iran: The Cold War Showdown
The toughest foreign policy challenge for the next US President is the "cold war" with Iran, says Thomas Friedman.
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1933 and 1948
Israel's 60th anniversary is also an occasion to recall a different anniversary which is no less significant, says William Kristol.
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Mythology on J Street
In challenging five apparent myths about being pro-Israel, Jeremy Ben Ami - one of the founders of the dovish "J Street" lobby group - has come up with a few of his own, says Ami Isseroff.
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"Occupied" Gaza?
Going by traditional international legal tests, Gaza is not occupied by Israel, say David Rivkin and Lee Casey.
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Rolling Back Hezbollah
Only the Lebanese military stands between Hezbollah and the collapse of Lebanese sovereignty, says David Schenker.
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Israel at Sixty: The Will to Survive
Sixty years after its creation, Israel's collective psyche represents both a determination to move forwards and a deep sense of the past, says Walter Reich.
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Five Myths About Being Pro-Israel
Jeremy Ben-Ami on what it means - and doesn't mean - to be a supporter of Israel.
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Israel at Sixty: The Right to Exist
On the Z Word blog, Ben Cohen counsels against being seduced by the so-called "one-state solution."
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Israel at Sixty: Struggle in the White House
Richard Holbrooke recalls the epic struggle within Harry Truman's Administration over the recognition of the State of Israel.
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Israel at Sixty: The Decade Ahead
Tough security challenges face Israel over the next ten years, but the IDF will rise to them, says Ron Ben Yishai.
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Israel at Sixty: Images of a Transforming Society
On Independence Day, six decades of photographs from Israel - war, peace, tragedy and hope.
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The Elusive Peace
A wide variety factors determine that, sixty years after the creation of the State of Israel, peace is a near impossibility, says Eran Yashiv.
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Getting Tough With Iran
All the talk is of Iran's nuclear ambitions, but the theocratic regime is also a destabilizing regional menace, especially in Iraq, says Fouad Ajami.
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The Pitfalls of Pappe
Anti-Zionist Israeli academic Ilan Pappe's history of the 1948 events is riddled with errors and flawed interpretations, argues Seth Frantzman.
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What Really Happened in 1948?
Using newly declassified documents, Israeli historian Efraim Karsh challenges the presentation of the events of 1948 as a tale of Palestinian dispossession.
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The Failings of Non-Proliferation
Syria's attempts to acquire a nuclear capacity demonstrate the criticial weaknesses underlying the international non-proliferation regime, says Ephraim Asculai.
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Israel at 60: A Miracle Unfinished
Israel is "a miracle of human will, determination and ultimately of hope," but its prosperity and well-being ultimately hinges on a real peace with the Palestinians, says Dominique Moisi.
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Trivializing the Holocaust
"Holocaust trivialization is a tool for some ideologically or politically
motivated activists to metaphorically compare phenomena they oppose to the
industrial-scale destruction of the Jews in World War II by Germans, Austrians,
and their allies," argues Manfred Gerstenfeld of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs.
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The True Face of Hamas
Hamas "is showing the world that anybody who believes that Israel is the worst enemy of the Palestinian people needs to think again," says a hard hitting-editorial in The Australian.
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Does the US Spy on Israel?
Concerns over the timing of the Ben Ami Kadish espionage case have raised another important question: does the US spy on Israel? Intelligence experts believe it does.
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Conspiracies and the Kadish Affair
What's behind the timing of the Ben Ami Kadish affair? Calev Ben David considers some possible answers.
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The Boycotter's Decalogue
How to be a labor union boycott activist in ten easy steps, as explained by Eve Garrard.
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The Spy from New Jersey
It's the stuff of a comic novel, says The New York Sun - an octogenerian charged with carrying out espionage activities for which he was rewarded with a meal in a restaurant. The law, the paper adds, needs to be enforced impartially in the case of Ben Ami Kadish.
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The Academic Boycott Roadshow
British academic David Miller gives his account of a UCU meeting featuring two Palestinian academics who called for a boycott of Israel.
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German Leftists Declare Solidarity with Israel
On the Z Word blog, Elif Kayi reports on a pathbreaking speech by the German leftist leader, Gregor Gysi.
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The Tangled Truth
Prominent Israeli historian Benny Morris examines a new study of how Palestinian Arabs worked with the Zionist enterprise.
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Hamas is Not a Peace Movement
Jimmy Carter should understand that there are no advocates inside Hamas of a genuine peace with Israel - the divide is between supporters of a short-term truce and a long-term armistice, says Robert Satloff.
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On Criticizing Israel and Antisemitism
As the University and College Union in the UK prepares to debate the academic boycott of Israel yet again, Norman Geras dissects the boycotter's fatuous claim that "criticism of Israel or Israeli policy are not, as such, antisemitic."
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Jimmy and Bashar
Jimmy Carter urged a boycott of the Moscow Olympics in protest at Soviet human rights violations; now, he's providing Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad with a seal of approval, says Ami Isseroff.
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Passover Under Siege
A letter from a Jerusalem seder in 1948, as Arab forces besieged the city and Jewish families marked the Passover holiday with meagre rations.
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Dialogue With Terrorists?
The Washington Post - which also carries an op-ed by Hamas leader Mahmoud al-Zahar claiming "our fight to redress the material crimes of 1948 is scarcely begun" - editorializes that Jimmy Carter is unconditionally giving political sanction to a group of terrorists.
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Carter: Fool on a Fool's Errand
Michael Young, opinion editor of Beirut's Daily Star newspaper, says Jimmy Carter won't speed up the peace process by becoming the "patsy" of Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal.
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More UCU Bias Against Israel
A UK speaking tour for Palestinian academics organized by the University and College Union mirrors the academic boycott campaign, says Richard Gold.
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Commemoration and Controversy
On the Z Word blog, Elif Kayi reports on the political controversy in Germany accompanying the "Train of Commemoration", a mobile exhibition which recalls the deportation of thousands of Jewish children by the Nazis
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Jewish in the National Sense
Former Israeli Supreme Court President Aharon Barak on the meaning of a Jewish state: "My lesson from the Holocaust is that Israel has to be the state of the Jewish people but also the state of all its citizens."
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The World's Worst Religious Leaders
The world's most odious clerics, according to Foreign Policy magazine - both Hassan Nasrallah of Hezbollah and Dov Lior, the rabbi of Kiryat Arba, are featured on the list.
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Israel's Bitter Divisions
Jeffrey Goldberg takes an in-depth look at the hard choices facing Israel in its sixtieth year, as it wrestles with challenges from security to identity.
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Laurence of Israelia
Revisiting the life of Laurence Oliphant, an early, devoted and somewhat eccentric non-Jewish supporter of Zionism.
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Jews from Arab Countries: The Justice Debate
On the Z Word blog, Ben Cohen examines reactions to the recent US Congress resolution which recognized the Jewish communities dispossessed from the Arab world in 1948.
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The Hamas Offensive
The acquisition of more sophisticated weapons by an emboldened Hamas may leave Israel with no military alternative other than ground operations, says American Jewish Committee terrorism expert Yehudit Barsky.
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Israel: The Next Generation
A comprehensive survey of Israel, 60 years after its creation, examining its security, its economy and - perhaps most importantly - its identity.
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WQXR's Pitiful Folly
Z Word's blog criticizes Jewcy's lame take on WQXR's refusal to air an AJC radio spot highlighting the plight of Sderot. See also this editorial from the New York Daily News.
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The Cairo Clique Gathers Again
The sixth Cairo conference, held last month, was an occasion for even more strident anti-Zionist and antisemitic rhetoric from the western activists gathered in solidarity with Islamist movements in the Middle East.
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New Z Word Podcast: Canada's Cairo Clique
Terry Glavin, author of Z Word essay The Cairo Clique: Anti-Zionism and the Canadian Left, in conversation with Z Word editor Ben Cohen.
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Muzzlewatch: WQXR Silences AJC Radio Message on Israel
AJC Executive Director David Harris examines the refusal of New York radio station WQXR to air his radio message highlighting the plight of Sderot. Listen to the broadcast here.
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Iran's Occupied Territories
Daniel Brett details the cruel existence of the "most deprived and persecuted ethnic group in the Middle East": the Ahwazi Arabs living under the rule of the Iranian regime.
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Beauty Tips in Tehran
Fashionistas in the Iranian capital are stretching the limits of the Islamist regime's restrictions on dress and appearance as far as they can.
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New Z Word Podcast: Canada's Cairo Clique
Terry Glavin, author of Z Word essay The Cairo Clique: Anti-Zionism and the Canadian Left, in conversation with Z Word editor Ben Cohen.
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NGO Monitor: EU Funds Extremist NGOs
A new report from the Jerusalem-based watchdog claims that the European Union has provided millions of Euros to NGOs which promote boycotts and other discriminatory measures against Israel.
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UK Jewish Leader: Life in Britain "Overwhelmingly Positive"
The President of Britain's main Jewish organization scorns claims by Robert Wistrich, a Hebrew University Professor and antisemitism scholar, that the UK is a crucible of antisemitism.
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Boycotting Israel: Vengeance and Failure
On the Z Word blog, Ben Cohen examines a recent Arab call to renew the boycott of Israel.
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Britain "Epicenter" of European Antisemitism, Says Wistrich
One of the world's leading scholars of antisemitism, Professor Robert Wistrich, says that a "millenial" phenomenon in the UK is becoming exacerbated.
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Criticizing Islam
Discussing the just-released film Fitna, Law Professor Afshin Ellian, who fled Iran in 1983 for Holland, argues that despite the appeal of radical Islam, political participation of moderate Muslims is on the rise.
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"No Different From Arafat"
When it came to addressing the question of Israel's legitimacy, Mahmoud Abbas's address to the Arab League in Damascus was no different from the views of his predecessor, Yasser Arafat, says Jonathan Halevi of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs (in Hebrew).
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The Boycotter as Stalker
Eve Garrard, author of the seminal Z Word essay "Excluding Israelis", offers a compelling, if uncomfortable, explanation for the compulsive behavior of those promoting the academic boycott.
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The UCU's Institutional Antisemitism
With the UK's academic union deliberating a fresh attempt to boycott Israeli academics, David Hirsh asks some pertinent questions about its institutional antisemitism.
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Peril in Sderot
Kenneth Bandler, communications director of the American Jewish Committee, provides an eyewitness of account of life under the Hamas rocket attacks against the Israeli town of Sderot.
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Anti-Boycott Activists Demand Transparency from UCU
As the General Secretary of the UK's University and College Union yet again backtracks on past promises to oppose the academic boycott, anti-boycott activists are demanding that legal advice the union has received on the issue be made public.
See also Z Word's blog for more comment.
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A "Liberal" Israel Lobby?
Gershom Gorenberg on the failings of Mearsheimer and Walt and the prospects for a "dovish lobby."
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Further Scrutiny of NIE Report on Iran
A respected Israeli think-tank summarizes the shortcomings of the recent National Intelligence Estimate on the Iranian threat.
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Fury and Fitna
On the Z Word blog, Elif Kayi examines the furore in the Dutch media around the documentary film Fitna, which harshly criticizes Islam.
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"Evil is Not Neutral"
Ha'aretz slams the Swiss gas deal with the Iranian regime: the Swiss chose "neutrality" during the Second World War, they appear to be doing the same on Iran, the paper argues.
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A Tale of Two Leaders
American Jewish Committee Executive Director David Harris examines two very different visits to the Middle East.
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Anti-Zionism and Antisemitism: Cosmopolitan Reflections
Online video of David Hirsh's recent lecture at Haifa University, tackling the key issues.
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Force, Violence and the "One-State" Formula
Z Word editor Ben Cohen explains why the "one-state" solution is nothing other than a formula for the violent elimination of Israel.
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The Power of Symbols
In the struggle against Islamist terrorism, Israel has to understand the vital power of symbolism, says Guy Bechor.
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The "Cold, Cold Heart" of Hamas
Nat Hentoff asks whether Hamas can be negotiated with, given its savage tactics.
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The "Jewish Power" Explanation
Harry's Place examines two anti-Zionists of Israeli origin who now buy into David Duke style ideas of "Jewish Power" and "Jewish Supremacism."
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Engaging Islam: The German Experience
On the Z Word blog, Elif Kayi reports on current debates in Germany over Muslim integration.
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How to Talk to Iran
Veteran diplomat Dennis Ross offers guidelines for the next US President.
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Portrait of an Islamist
A detailed analysis of leading Islamist cleric, Sheikh Yusuf al Qaradawi, alongside other scholarly contributions in the latest issue of the MERIA journal.
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Anti-Zionist Chic
Marching against Zionist domination of banks, government and media? Stuck for something to wear? Check out Judeosphere's fashion guide.
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Ten Commandments for an Intractable Conflict
Bradley Burston on the tablets of stone which should guide the Israeli-Palestinian conflict - while it remains a conflict.
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Defending Israel in South Africa
On Z Word's blog, Zev Krengel, Chairman of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies,
offers a forthright response to criticisms of South Africa's Jewish
leadership expressed in Z Word's recently published essay, "Franchising
'Apartheid'."
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Contemporary Antisemitism: Report to US Congress
Just published: a comprehensive report on global antisemitism presented to Congress by the State Department. The report includes detailed analysis of anti-Zionist discourse, antisemitism within the UN system and other vital issues.
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Paris Book Fair War of Words Continues to Rage
On Z Word's blog, Elif Kayi looks at the continuing furore in the French press over the Paris and Turin book fairs.
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Integrating Israel
Egyptian writer Masri Feki argues that "real global and lasting peace will come the day Israel's neighbors recognize that the Jewish people are on this land de jure." Via Point of No Return:
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"Neo-Jew": Birth of an Epithet
Ami Isseroff on Counterpunch magazine's most recent contribution to the revival of antisemitism.
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How Not to Deal With Hamas
A grim assessment from Chuck Freilich, who dismisses conventional thinking on the Hamas threat and argues that Israelis are faced with a "prolonged period of pain and frustration."
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Already At War
Yossi Klein Halevi says that the massacre at a Jerusalem yeshiva demonstrates that Israel and Iran have gone to war.
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The Road to Damascus
Jonathan Freedland argues that an Israeli peace with Syria is a necessary condition for a two-state solution to the conflict with the Palestinians.
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Driving Into the 21st Century
A video spreading like wildfire across the web shows a Saudi woman engaged in the ultimate act of defiance - driving a car.
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"We Have Learned Nothing"
In the wake of the massacre at a Jerusalem yeshiva, Shahar Ilan argues that neither the Israeli
right nor the Israeli left have learned anything from the assassination of former Prime Minister, Yitzhak Rabin.
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Juan Cole Gets It Wrong - Again
Two years ago, Middle East specialist Professor Juan Cole rushed to explain that Iranian President Ahmadinejad's exhortation to "wipe Israel from the map" had been mistranslated. But posters and billboards on display in Tehran show that the translation was completely accurate.
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Antisemitism 2.0 - The Challenge
A new paper from the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs argues that the transformation of the web into a social networking tool is making antisemitism acceptable.
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Victim Competition
On Z Word's blog, Elif Kayi summarizes the debate in the French press over President Sarkozy's Holocaust commemoration proposals.
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Putin and the Jewish Question
Anshel Pfeffer considers the legacy of outgoing Russian President Vladimir Putin's relations with the Jewish community, observing: "As a rule, Jewish communities flourish most in democratic societies."
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Amis and Islam
Leading British novelist Martin Amis - at the center of row over his statements on radical Islam - says that that the UK has reached "toxic"" levels of anti-Americanism and anti-Zionism.
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US Pulls Back From Fighting Hate in Europe
Andrew Baker of the American Jewish Committee decries the US State Department for undermining a vital program to combat hate crime in Europe.
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"Spare Us The Explanations"
Bradley Burston tells western apologists for terror: "When a gunman walks into a Jewish religious seminary at the main entrance to that part of Jerusalem which has been Jewish since 1948, and which was stolen from no one, pay attention."
See also this exchange carried on Engage between David Hirsh and Seamus Milne.
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Counterpunching The "Neo-Jews"
Z Word's blog on the latest anti-Zionist screed published on the Counterpunch website.
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"Only Too Ready To Misunderstand"
Z Word's blog highlights the furious debate over Israeli minister Matan Vilnai's use of the Hebrew word "shoah" in the context of the current clashes in Gaza.
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Reviewing The Academic Boycott Campaign
In this new JCPA paper, Ronnie Fraser takes stock of the campaign by some UK academics to boycott Israel's academic institutions.
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The Kasztner Controversy
Mira Vogel on Rudolf Kasztner, the Hungarian Jewish leader whose activities during the Second World War were distorted by anti-Zionists pushing the ultimate libel: that the Zionist movement collaborated with the Nazis.
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Hamas Pushing for More Conflict
As Hamas rockets target the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon, Palestinians in Gaza are wondering what the future holds under a regime that won't deliver peace.
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Vilnai's "Shoah" Remark - The Mother of Mistranslations
Thousands of media outlets have erroneously reported Israel's Deputy Defense Minister, Matan Vilnai, as threatening a "shoah" - or Holocaust - against the Palestinians. As both Harry's Place and Melanie Phillips report, this is a fatal mistranslation: in Hebrew, "shoah" means disaster, "Ha-shoah" means Holocaust.
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"Methodist Hijacking"
A hard-hitting editorial from Philadelphia's Jewish Exponent: "As in previous cases of mainline denominations flirting with anti-Zionism, it is
incumbent on people of goodwill to make it clear to the Methodists what's at
stake in this debate...most Methodists are largely unaware that extremists seek to use their faith's
good name to bash Israel."
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Ill Wind for Jihadis
Bradley Burston argues that "true Islam" is coming to the fore - which is bad news for the jihadis.
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Taking Zionism Personally
Gil Troy on an important distinction between Crisis Zionism and Identity Zionism.
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al-Dura Trial Awaits Verdict
Media Backspin reports from Paris on the latest developments in the controversial trial taking place in Paris over claims that video of the killing of Mohammed al Dura - a Palestinian child in Gaza who became a symbol of the second intifada - did not accurately reflect what happened.
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15 Seconds is All You Have...
Curious about the pace of life under the missiles raining from Gaza upon the Israeli town of Sderot? Watch this video.
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Boycotts and Books in Turin
Via Engage: Elisabetta Ambrosi talks to Mitchell Cohen about calls to boycott the Turin bookfair, because of plans to honor the State of Israel's 60th anniversary.
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"Contemporary Antisemitism is Not Obviously Antisemitic"
Addressing the Global Forum Against Antisemitism in Jerusalem, David Hirsh argues that the "aim is to change people's minds."
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Zionism Reviewed
Z Word's blog with an overview of a Times Literary Supplement essay highlighting six recent works on Zionism and Israel.
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"Give Me A Break"
American Jewish Committee Executive Director David Harris argues that many aspects of the Middle East conflict are up for debate - but Israel's yearning for peace isn't one of them.
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Bernard-Henry Levi on Antisemitism's Return
France's leading public intellectual says anti-Zionism, Holocaust denial and "victim competition" are fueling a revival of antisemitism.
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Another Palestinian Illusion
Instead of making barbed remarks about Kosovo, Palestinian negotiators should focus on why a Palestinian state has not been achieved, says Moshe Elad.
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"Zionism" in the Arab Media
Z Word's blog surveys the use and abuse of the word "Zionism" in Arab media outlets.
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Weekend Reading
Z Word's blog with a selection of online commentaries worth reading.
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Conspiracy Theory Creeps Into The Guardian
David Hirsh argues that The Guardian has turned a minor story into a major one using the trops of conspiracy theory.
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Anti-Zionist No More
Via Point of No Return: An extraordinary interview with Nathan Weinstock, once the doyen of Jewish anti-Zionists, now one of their more considered opponents.
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Confronting Dutch Antisemitism
Manfred Gerstenfeld examines a recent Dutch poll which showed that 47 per cent of respondents wouldn't countenance a Jewish Prime Minister.
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Power and the Powerless
Christopher Hitchens on a classic novel, just republished, which sheds light on the contradictions of antisemitism.
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Bad Social Science?
Judeosphere examines claims concerning the flawed methodology used by John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt in their book, "The Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy." See Z Word's blog as well.
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Challenging "Preferential Treatment"
Z Word's blog on the German academics pushing for an end to what they call "preferential treatment" of Israel.
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Too Much Holocaust? - Geras Replies to Judt
Norman Geras dissects Tony Judt's latest New York Review of Books article, The "Problem of Evil" in Postwar Europe.
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LSE Students Vote for Divestment
Z Word's blog reviews coverage of the decision by LSE students to vote for a one-sided motion urging divestment from Israel.
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Anti-Zionism is Racism
Bradley Burston considers the tropes of anti-Zionism and declares them to be racist.
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Greg Felton's Nazi Analogies
On the Z Word blog, guest writer Mikey details more of the lies and distortions of Greg Felton, the conspiracy theorist invited to address a "Freedom to Read Week" event at Vancouver's Public Library.
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Terrorism's Iranian Bankers Under the Spotlight
Shimon Shapira of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs looks at the pivotal role played by Iranian banks in financing Islamist terror groups.
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Deadly Libel on Campus
Andre Oboler on how the myth of Israeli "apartheid" is gaining traction on campus.
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Middle East Media Outlets Promote Darfur Conspiracy Theory
Via Engage: Stephen Stalinksy of the Middle East Media Research Institute examines how Arab and Iranian newspapers and TV channels are depicting outrage over Darfur as a Zionist conspiracy.
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A Plea for Balance
Liberal Christians need to be more sensitive to Jewish concerns about Israel, says David Greenhaw.
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Vancouver Library Antisemitism Row Rumbles On
Z Word's blog reports on how Vancouver's City Librarian is defending a speaking invitation to a known antisemitic conspiracy theorist - and how he's being criticized.
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NGO Monitor: NGOs Promote "Israel Apartheid Week"
NGO Monitor says that a number of prominent NGOs which receive European government funding are helping to promote "Israel Apartheid Week" events.
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Iran: Then and Now
New on Z Word's blog: watch the late Shah of Iran issue a warning about the power of the American Jewish lobby and read about an anti-Zionist exhibition at a Tehran University where students seem more interested in confronting the Islamist regime.
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Strengthening Palestinian Society Boosts Peace
Natan Sharansky, a former Soviet political prisoner and Israeli cabinet minister, and Bassam Eid, a leading Palestinian human rights activist, argue that President Bush is right to say that peace rests on a "fundamental transformation of Palestinian society."
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Vancouver Library Stirs Antisemitism Worries
Via Elder of Ziyon: Terry Glavin despairs at the decision of the Vancouver Public Library to host Greg Felton, a 9/11 conspiracy theorist and apologist for the Iranian regime, as its contribution to Canada's "Freedom to Read" week.
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Far Left or Far Right?
Z Word's blog on the ideological connections between a blacklist and a boycott call in Italy.
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Israel's Secret Success
Daniel Gavron argues that Israel is refusing to accept that the conflict in the Middle East has essentially been resolved in its favor.
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Israel Can't Ignore Attacks from Gaza
David Harris, Executive Director of the American Jewish Committee, argues that the international community must recognize the profound threat which Hamas poses to Israel.
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Iranians Can Bring About Regime Change in Iran
Iranian blogger Potkin Azamehr challenges Israeli analyst Yossi Alpher's claim in The Forward that the Islamist regime in Iran "however odious, is here to stay."
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States, Writers and Boycotters
Norman Geras unravels Tariq Ramadan's call for a boycott of the Turin Book fair, which is themed around the 60th anniversary of Israel's statehood.
Listen to Norman Geras and Steve Bayme discuss anti-Zionism on the Z Word podcast.
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Columnists Express Concern for Venezuelan Jews
The Jewish Exponent reports on two recent articles, including one by Dina Siegel Vann of the American Jewish Committee, on the crisis facing Jews in Venezuela. Z Word blog contributor Gene Zitver also addressed the issue.
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Methodist Report Smears Israel As "Original Sin"
Listen to Ari Gordon of the American Jewish Committtee discuss the renewed divestment campaign and the ideas underlying it. More discussion on Engage and Solomonia.
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Folly in Soweto
Z Word's blog on the flaws of "Israel Apartheid Week" in South Africa's most famous township.
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Is Facebook Really So Useful?
Israeli President Shimon Peres says Facebook is a vital tool in the fight against antisemitism and anti-Zionism; Andre Oboler argues that it can also work the other way.
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Mearsheimer, Gandhi and the Antisemitism Debate
Z Word's blog on how John Mearsheimer's latest comments block intelligent public discussion of antisemitism.
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The Conspiracist Revival
Richard Landes in the Jewish Political Studies Review on the revival of conspiracy theories with Jews at their center.
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Archbishop of Canterbury Slams Antisemitism
In a major lecture addressing the wider issue of blasphemy, Rowan Williams, head of the Anglican Church, excoriates the antisemitic worldview.
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The Image and Significance of Contemporary Zionism
An extensive debate between Gideon Shimoni and Israel Harel.
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The Past in the Present
Z Word's blog reports on two recent articles which examine the contemporary resonance of the Nazi past.
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Addressing Antisemitism: Why and How
The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has issued this guide for educators faced with the challenge of antisemitism in the classroom.
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The Anger Over an Online Essay
Washington Post ombudsman Deborah Howell on why Arun Gandhi's bigoted views on Jewish identity should have never been published.
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Fresh Criticism of UN Human Rights Commissioner over Arab Charter
Calgary Herald observes: "Human rights are just that - rights for all humans, regardless of political ideology...Louise Arbour should never have lent any stamp of legitimacy to this profoundly flawed Arab charter."
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The Neocon Fixation
Jonathan Tobin cautions against the "Neocons Are to Blame" theory of politics.
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Israel Through Israeli Eyes
Gali Gold on the new wave of Israeli documentary cinema.
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Intrigue, Betrayal and the British Empire
Leading Israeli historian Meir Zamir on recently uncovered Syrian documents which "call for a re-examination of certain basic beliefs concerning British policy in Palestine from 1945-48."
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Russia's Mean Streets
Z Word's Blog on reports of a "surge" in antisemitic attacks in Russia.
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Egypt Working to Contain Gaza
Israeli journalist Ehud Ya'ari on Egypt's policy towards Gaza: "Cairo's current imperative is to contain Hamas and keep it focused on Israel".
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Antisemitism and Anti-Zionism: Cosmopolitan Reflections
Podcasts of last night's London meeting on a vital subject, featuring David Hirsh, Les Back, Robert Fine and others. Well worth a listen.
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Is Perry Anderson Lost in the Lobby?
Alan Johnson on how a leading leftist intellectual has "embraced a conspiracy story."
Hat Tip: Engage
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Apologia for Habash
Z Word's blog on why George Habash of the PFLP was a terrorist.
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