Stories about Israel from December, 2007
Arabeyes: Sad for Bhutto
News of the murder of former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was received with shock across the Middle East. Bloggers reacted in awe, shock, anger and submission to the hopelessness of the human race.
Israel: Journalists Face Possible Jail Time for Visits to Enemy States
Three Israeli journalists who visited Lebanon and Syria are facing possible jail time for visiting nations that the government terms “enemy states.” Lisa Goldman, Ron Ben-Yishai, and Tsur Shezaf have been investigated and will spend a maximum of four years in jail if found guilty. Here's the reaction from Israel's English speaking blogs.
Israel: Hypocritical Arabs
“(A)ny state that defines itself as “Arab” would be equally guilty of the racism that Israel is being accused of,” writes The Elder of Zion, in this post, which lists excerpts from the constitutions of a number of Arab countries and Iran.
Israel: Interfaith Hanukkah Party
Jerusalem Gypsy, from Israel, holds an interfaith Hanukkah party – with Muslims and Jews.
Russia: Lyudmila Ulitskaya
Russian Blog writes about Lyudmila Ulitskaya's latest – and, possibly, her last – novel, “Daniel Stein, translator”: “After being such a prolific writer for many years, and after the huge work she put into her last effort, she of course deserves a break. Anyone who has read this masterpiece would...
Lebanon: Who Killed Francois Hajj and Why?
Lebanon grabs the international headlines again, with another assassination. Who was killed and why? Who is blaming whom and what have the region's bloggers got to say.
Israel: Rockets Hit Sderot, Flame the Israeli Blogosphere
The tiny Israeli town of Sderot, minutes away from Gaza, was just hit by 20 Qassam rockets. It's mayor also resigned and bloggers are fuming. Maya Norton brings us the latest reactions from the English speaking Israeli blogs.
Israel: Teacher's Strike Over
An agreement between the teachers union and the Ministry of Finance was signed just a mere 15 minutes before the Israeli Labor Court's restraining order was activated, in what has ended the longest strike in Israel's education system (over 60 days). Teachers received a raise in their salaries and the prime minister's personal promise to reduce the number of students in a classroom. Read reactions from the Israeli Hebrew bloggers here.
Israel: Arab Literacy Project
From Israel, Maya Norton writes about the UAE-based Kalima project, which aims to translate books written in different languages into Arabic.
Travelling through Palestine and Israel
Ray Hanania takes you on a voyage to Palestine and Israel and shares his thoughts on peace and normalisation of relations here.
Israel: Hanukkah, festival of light and cultural wars
Hanukkah an all-time favorite Jewish holiday, has interesting historical value dealing with issues relevant to Israeli culture and sense of identity. Hanukkah commemorates the victory of the ancient Israelites over the Greeks in a series of battles taking place around the year 165 BC. The battles were not about territory nor resources, but dealt with freedom; the right to practice religion and follow the Jewish faith. Gilad Lotan shows us how the struggle continues today.
Israel: Hanukkah Special
CK from Jewlicious shares scenes of Hanukkah festivities in this photo feature.
Israel: Hanukkah Recipe
IsRealli brings us a special Hanukkah recipe in this vlog.
Israel: Land Without a People
One of early Zionism’s slogans that took hold of the imagination of the proponents of a Jewish state was “A land without a people for a people without a land,” writes The Elder of Zion, from Israel.
Palestine: One State Solution?
Who is afraid of the one-state solution in the Palestinian-Israeli crisis, asks Palestinian blogger Leila Haddad. For her answer, click here.
Israel: Jony Jerusalem, AIDS activist
Jony Jerusalem is the online name of an AIDS activist in Israel. He lives in Jerusalem and has been an HIV carrier for the past five and a half years. Frustrated by the lack of information online, he created the website Israelpositive. On December 1, Jony launched a new a social networking website for HIV positive carriers.
Egypt: Feelings of a nation
With the world's sight focused on Annapolis, Egyptian students have another battle with the Israeli and American Ambassadors at home. Eman Abd Al Rahman translates from Arabic.
Egypt: Annapolis Adieu
"Annapolis, Annapolis, this name is haunting me everywhere I go - in newspapers and blogs and on TV. For me, Annapolis seems to be a Greek city near The Acropolis, or something. But the truth is, it is an American city where a peace conference was held between the Arabs, Israelis, and Americans," writes Tarek Amr, who gives us a new perspective on the peace talks.