The reality is that over the last eight years the belief that America is out to get Muslims and Arabs has spread so far that it is now common throughout most levels of society from Morocco to Indonesia.
Rageh Omaar on Obama and some of the challenges he will face. Notice from the rest of the article that Rageh does not believe America is out to get Muslims and Arabs. Really? This is like saying that Richard the Lion Heart and his England were not out to get Muslims and Arabs when they beseiged Acre...which is probably what Rageh will say in the documentary about the Crusades that he is in Syria to make. Nothing surprises me from "ethnic" reporters who work for Western news agencies and imbibe their "standards" of impartial reporting.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Friday, January 30, 2009
طيّب بس سؤال لو سمحتو
Posted by Maysaloon at 5:37 pm 0 comments
Labels: وجهة نظر
صلاة المنافقين
Posted by Maysaloon at 5:27 pm 1 comments
فمنا الكثيرون ممن تقلد بأصناف اليسار و اليمين الغربي, و نسينا ان الله قد جعلنا قوماً وسطا
Posted by Maysaloon at 4:00 pm 0 comments
More on the rise of "cool" Arabia...a concerted PR campaign being run from somewhere in between Washington DC and Riyadh...allegedly....by me....the allegation that is....
Posted by Maysaloon at 10:19 am 0 comments
Labels: "Cool Arabia", Lina Sinjab
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Prime Minister Erdogan of Turkey has more dignity and outrage for the murder of Arabs and Muslims than the spineless jellyfish we call Arab leaders..
.Posted by Maysaloon at 9:16 pm 0 comments
Labels: Sleeping Arabs, Turkey
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Posted by Maysaloon at 11:09 pm 1 comments
Poverty in Philosophy - another look at Sari Nusseibeh
I've just finished reading two lectures made by Sari Nusseibeh at Harvard University last November. They are labelled "Philosophical Reflections on the Israeli-Palestinian War". I don't think I've ever had any respect for Sari or his thoughts, not since first discovering his writings a few years ago. Here we have a man from one of the oldest Arab families of Jerusalem, supposedly highly educated, yet who can be easily overtaken in terms of 'enlightenment' by the humblest fruit or vegetable seller in downtown Cairo or Basra. I have no time to write a detailed criticism of what he is saying in these two lectures, but to summarise he breaks down the "Israeli/Palestinian" conflict into something which can be broken out of if people are courageous enough to break out of some rigid identity that is imposed internally and externally, and come up with clever solutions to this "problem". He takes us through many hoops, citing both Hannah Arendt and Isaiah Berlin, through conceptions of freedom, what it means to be an "actor" and the relationship of intellect, will and action. The aim for any of Sari's "actors" is to be a fox, cunning enough to grasp reality and then to desire, pursue and put in place, alternative futures which are far from inevitable. All he is really saying is, if we were all just somebody else then everything will be fine and we can end conflict, end war. Thank you, but I thought that with a Phd from Harvard you could come up with something a little bit better than this vapish argument.
One thing which is prominent throughout Sari's article is the distinct lack of any context in any shape or form to his arguments, something he himself sometimes criticises people of in those very same lectures. Throughout the article he assumes the mantle of an impartial commentator to events, actors and the world around him, amazingly, he manages to internalise the naive and childlike idiocy of Americans and Europeans who bring their International Relations and Diplomacy 101 workshops and theories over to Africa and Asia to teach people how to live. His example of the Russian invasion against Georgia is only coherent for somebody who relies on CNN or perhaps the BBC for all their analysis of what is happening.
With regards to the problems of the Middle East, not once does he consider that perhaps colonialism, the mandates and the occupation of Palestine by marauding, racist and murdering Europeans could perhaps be a source of grievance. Apparently he believes he surprises people by claiming that the Israel/Palestine conflict could be ended if Mahmoud Abbas and Ehud Olmert locked themselves alone in a room. He neglects to consider that it is not Mahmoud Abbas who speaks for the Palestinian cause - a man most Palestinians would prefer to see hanging from the gallows. The person in that room should be the Palestinian farmer who has seen his land taken over and his trees uprooted by a Jewish settler from Brooklyn, New York. Or perhaps the woman who has had five of her ten children murdered by Israeli soldiers whose parents or grandparents came from Eastern or Western Europe. Only one man will leave the room in that scenario and this is the fact that Sari ignores by manipulating his argument to the conclusion that he wants rather than the one it should be. In the plush offices and lecture rooms of Harvard, a pillar of the American intellectual and political establishment, Sari conveniently forgets the truth staring Palestinians in the face every day since 1948 - they are facing a war of extermination.
Posted by Maysaloon at 2:01 pm 2 comments
Labels: Palestine, Philosophy, Ramblings, Rebels without a clue
Monday, January 26, 2009
From one of the worldwide protests in support of Gaza:
Posted by Maysaloon at 2:26 pm 4 comments
Labels: Palestine
Sunday, January 25, 2009
The audacity of audacity
When I read articles like this I want to throw myself from the nearest window; the clueless Hind Kabawat has an article posted on the awful Syria Comment blog:
Has Israel a right to exist? Only the most extreme and intractable elements in the Arab world now say, “No.” As almost all informed Israelis know, most of the Arab world has long ago accepted the reality of a Jewish state in the Middle East.
When people like this take the liberty of speaking for "most" or "many" in the Arab world, when they undermine the resistance, when they sell Palestine in the name of fake compassion, acclaim and fame, then they are rightly called cowards and traitors. We need shoes...lots of shoes.
Posted by Maysaloon at 2:39 am 5 comments
Labels: Syria
Posted by Maysaloon at 1:32 am 3 comments
Labels: Palestine
Thursday, January 22, 2009
The Empire strikes back
The new emperor spoke today, about the challenges of the empire and which men and women he will appoint to deal with the more troublesome parts on its frontiers. John Mitchell gave a boring and irrelevant talk about how committed he was to finding a solution between the Palestinians and the Israelis. I caught his speech from the point where he was saying something about 800 years and how somebody had come over to him and ask him whether he had said 800 years, twice. After replying twice that same person said, "Pah, such a recent argument." I rolled my eyes at such stupid shows, not from Mitchell, but from the quite clearly Zionist charmer who had spoke to him. The Zionists love to orientalise themselves and make themselves to be part of the land. At any point in a conversation with somebody they are trying to impress they will love making some anecdote about how tough and prickly they are from the outside, but sweet on the inside, on how they deal with the harshness of deserts and so on ad nauseum. Forget the fact that they are originally Eastern Europeans or Ashkenazi Jews who are more at home in Europe and North America than in the Middle East. Anyhow, I digress. Obama's speech had nothing but praise for Mubarak's Egypt, he made the usual Israeli pledge of allegiance and reassurance, and he made a number of allusions to the troublemakers in the region, Iran and Syria. For Syria, it was the promise of a potential peace deal, for Iran, a warning against supporting "terror" groups, that is Hamas and Hezbullah, as well as the many armed groups in Iraq. There will be more of the same support for "moderates" in the region, a strong endorsement of Mahmoud Abbas and the Palestinian Authority, and a reiteration of his "commitment" to a "two-state solution". No American president's speech would be complete without an 'acknowledgement' of the suffering on "both" sides of this conflict, Palestinian and Israeli. Duly noted Mr. President. [middle finger here]
Oh and of course he promised not to torture people anymore, ordering the closure of Guantanamo and saying something about the people of the United States possessing values of some sort. I haven't a clue what these are, but I'm sure it would be a good idea if they did. There was actually little mention of Iraq, in the part of the broadcast that I managed to catch, and this was a little bit surprising.
It was very interesting that there is now one vizier, Richard Holbrooke assigned for both Pakistan and Afghanistan. This shows how bad the situation is now and how clear it is that Pakistan is now sinking into the battle between America and whoever it is fighting there. I couldn't help but wonder how soon it would be before there was a full scale American ground assault in the North Western provinces of that country. This might not be Obama's style, I think massive aid to strengthen the government of Pakistan will probably be more likely, but who knows. The first one hundred days of a US presidency are usually the key ones which define what comes later so let us see. I noted with some interest how Holbrooke considered John Negroponte as his friend. Also he felt it very important to reassure listeners that he took Pakistan very seriously, respecting its culture and history and so on. There will be interesting developments there soon I expect.
Doesn't everybody think it very interesting that the United States, said to be the world's greatest superpower, is unable to subdue the people of an area from the Mediterranean to central Asia? A new era of American power is indeed emerging, the empire is gathering its strength for a renewed strike, with flowers and guns this time. When this does reach a good momentum, we will see many people who secretly idolise the United States in the Arab world start singing its praises again. There will be a resurgence of "moderation" again, up until now a dirty word thanks to the honest and frank brutality of the Bush administration. I have surprised many people in the past by saying I preferred John McCain or even George Bush as presidents. People saw the ugly face of America for what it was. Well, the mask is now on and the same fools who always wanted to believe will again believe, and those who always rejected the lies will continue to be steadfast. It will be good now that the lines have become clearer.
Posted by Maysaloon at 8:51 pm 1 comments
Labels: Afghanistan, Egypt, Hamas, Hezbullah, Iran, Israel, Pakistan, Palestine, Ramblings, Syria, United States
The 'evolution' of Arab weaponry...
I liked this so much, so I pinched it from Angry Arab, who pinched it from somebody else...
Posted by Maysaloon at 6:31 pm 0 comments
Labels: Sleeping Arabs, The Arab world
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Posted by Maysaloon at 2:08 pm 1 comments
Labels: Iraq
Monday, January 19, 2009
Gaza - an analysis
Analysis always involves a deeper investigation into the causes and effects of a particular event. In the murky world of politics, no analysis can be complete in a sense which could satisfy us since in many cases much of what takes place is beyond the scrutiny of academics, intellectuals or even the law. So how are we to make any kind of sense of the events and actors that we see before us? How are we to make sense of Gaza?
Posted by Maysaloon at 10:59 am 7 comments
Labels: Palestine, Ramblings, The Arab world
Friday, January 16, 2009
Unusual article on the CNN website where the writer is surprised with the defiance of the Gazans.
"I'm surprised at how buoyant people are given the circumstances. Talking to them, I find morale high and an overall sense of defiance.
At one point I saw a young boy on a donkey cart, unaware I was observing him. As an Israeli jet passed overhead, he shook a fist at the sky."
Posted by Maysaloon at 5:46 pm 0 comments
قلتها من قبل و سأقولها الآن, فلا نامت أعين الجبناء
ها أنا جالَسٌ هنا, في مكتب دافئ و أنا استمع للموسيقى مع زميل لي. الجرائد لم تعد تهتم بما يحدث في غزة و أخبارها صارت بعيدة عن الأذهان العامة. أنا فرح لأن الويك أند قد أتى و سوف أذهب لمنزل دافئ و أتعشى, أو ربما اذهب للعشاء مع زميل لي. في هذا الوقت, يوجد رجل في غزة اسمه م د و قد خسر في القصف الاسرائيلي منزله و مقهاه الجميل و الناجح. م د لم يعد لديه شيء, لا مال, و لا دار, و لا رزق. يا ترى ماذا يفعل الآن, و أنا ذاهب للعشاء بعد قليل؟ كم استحي من نفسي, و كم أخشى من شهادة يداي و أرجلي عليّ في يوم حر لا ظل الا لمن اتى و كتابه في يمينه... يوم أتمنى لو كنت في مكان م د و أنا حي. كم اتمنى ان اموت رجلاً و أقف في وجه الظلم و لو للحظة قبل أن تقبض روحي...كي أرفع رأسي في ذلك اليوم أمام من يستحق ان نسعى لرضاه
.Posted by Maysaloon at 4:30 pm 0 comments
The inaugaration of Obama is very soon, so the Israeli attack on Gaza should be over shortly. In England, this is all already old news. On the day that the UN headquarters and warehouses got bombed in Gaza, the top news in the UK was about a plane that crashed into the sea near New York city in the United States.
.Posted by Maysaloon at 10:09 am 1 comments
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Before the Gaza invasion began someone had asked me why I was becoming so angry. I assure you all that I intend to get angrier and angrier. I don't need to see Palestinians getting mutilated on my TV screen to get worked up.
.Posted by Maysaloon at 10:16 am 1 comments
Labels: Ramblings
Video clips are emerging from Gaza showing Hamas operations against the Israeli occupation forces, just as Hezbullah used to do during the 2006 war. The first showed a sniper eliminating one of the Israeli soldiers, his colleagues only notice a few moments later and they appear visibly shaken. In another clip, Hamas assault a residential apartment which has been taken over by Israeli forces. The clip shows what appears to be a direct hit by an RPG on one of the soldiers on a balcony, then gunfire and more explosions as the Hamas fighters enter the residence and again, eliminate the remaining Israeli targets. In another clip, a journalist with Russia today spends a night with the resistance as they prepare to go on operation against the Israeli forces. They appear disciplined, well supplied and focused and this is clearly not the first or the last of many missions they have carried out. You will not see this in Western news media, Arabs fighting against an invading modern Western army and inflicting grave damage. This is day 20, and the Israelis are still unable to overrun Gaza.
.Wednesday, January 14, 2009
The battles taking place in Gaza are not being covered due to an intense Zionist news and media blackout but I assure you - Israeli casualties are much higher than we are being told. Hamas is holding up remarkably well and the new style of warfare, of which the martyr Imad al Mughniyeh was a pioneer, should now be a template for any group resisting Western imperialism and modern armies. We are in day 19, that's right, 19, of a massive onslaught held by the army that was once "undefeatable" and they are being held off by Arabs. The Gazan people are under seige, under constant bombardment, under constant rains of death and destruction, yet they remain defiant. I can almost see the day when every single Zionist settlement and city will be overrun.
.A fatwa has been made announcing that any Arab soldiers of the Israeli army who are killed are not to be prayed upon, nor to be buried in Muslim cemetaries. I'm surprised a Fatwa was even needed. This should also have included Arabs and Muslims in the British and American armies, of whom there are many unfortunately.
.Posted by Maysaloon at 10:08 am 4 comments
Labels: Ramblings
There is something new and intriguing taking place in Turkey. For the first time in a pro-Palestinian demonstration, I saw Turkish flags on Saturday, in Turkey itself there is increased interest in what is happening in the region and a renewed look East rather than to Europe. Is Turkey finally burying Ataturk?
.Posted by Maysaloon at 9:57 am 0 comments
Labels: Turkey
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
This is Mubarak's Egypt...
(taken by Serene, published with permission)
Posted by Maysaloon at 11:59 pm 1 comments
Labels: Egypt
هلا يا صقر القسام
The earlier clip had a very catchy song, I first heard a version of this during the 2006 war but this version is for Hamas, the Palestinian resistance group fighting - amongst others - against Zionism.
Posted by Maysaloon at 9:54 pm 0 comments
Monday, January 12, 2009
Mughniyeh's "new school of fighting"
The excellent Amal Saad Ghorayeb writing for the Electronic Intifada:
Posted by Maysaloon at 12:30 pm 0 comments
With friends like these, who needs enemies?: "One anti-war protest in Tel Aviv is worth hundreds from Jakarta to Buenos Aires. Remember this equation when you write your next post."
.Posted by Maysaloon at 12:18 pm 2 comments
Labels: Rebels without a clue
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Accusations that the British media is anti-Israeli are absolutely hilarious. The BBC or Sky would then be happy because they think being criticized by both "sides" means they are being impartial and they can carry on as before, which is exactly what Zionists would love them to do. For the BBC, I suspect this is a genuine sentiment but for Sky, it is an excuse, since they are deliberately pro-Zionist in their coverage and questioning of events.
.Posted by Maysaloon at 1:06 pm 0 comments
Labels: Ramblings
Friday, January 09, 2009
A day of anger and protest
Posted by Maysaloon at 4:31 pm 6 comments
Labels: Palestine
Thursday, January 08, 2009
Hezbullah's website, Promise, is back online. It had been taken down earlier today with only a message saying we will be back soon.
.Posted by Maysaloon at 2:31 pm 1 comments
Labels: Hezbullah
The ancestors of the Palestinian people defied an empire in Masada, they do the same today in Gaza...
.Posted by Maysaloon at 1:36 pm 4 comments
Labels: Palestine
The Israeli's are blowing their own trumpet: Excellent intel on Gaza shows Israel learned from its errors in Lebanon
Posted by Maysaloon at 12:45 pm 1 comments
From Haaretz:
"It is safe to assume that Palestinian operatives, working in coordination with Hezbollah and sponsored by Iran, are responsible for the rocket attacks in Nahariya and elsewhere in the north. The rocket fire also places Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah among the list of top Arab militant leaders. He doesn't just talk, he acts."
.The giant speaks...
Not even a fly can come into South Lebanon without Hezbullah's approval. The missiles fired this morning are a warning. Initially I thought Hezbullah were not interested in escalating the situation since it would have been almost certain that Israel had prepared plans for a massive assault and only needed a pretext. The pretext is there, let us see what Hezbullah announce and what Israel decide to do.
.Tuesday, January 06, 2009
The media blackout continues...You see, Gaza is so small and there are so many Israeli troops there, that most of their casualties so far have been from 'friendly' fire. That is why 10 days on there is still fierce fighting taking place, maybe the Israelis are fighting each other in the dark?
Posted by Maysaloon at 2:26 pm 2 comments
Fast in solidarity with Gaza, if you can...in Syria students have announced they are going on a hunger strike.
.Posted by Maysaloon at 11:27 am 8 comments
Monday, January 05, 2009
ماضاقت البلاد باهلها ولكن احلام الرجال تضيق
Posted by Maysaloon at 11:01 pm 0 comments
Labels: Poetry
Mauritania has recalled its ambassador from Israel amidst calls to cut all diplomatic ties with the Zionist state, meanwhile the Kurds of northern Iraq held rallies and protests in support of the Palestinian people and Gaza, condemning Israel.
.Posted by Maysaloon at 10:46 pm 0 comments
Labels: Israel, Kurds, The Arab world
Haaretz: In contrast to the open policy that prevailed during the Second Lebanon War, the Defense Ministry decided to close the Strip entirely to the press.
.Posted by Maysaloon at 9:49 pm 0 comments
أكبر سفارة أمريكية في العالم افتتحت اليوم في بغداد
Posted by Maysaloon at 5:52 pm 0 comments
The Arab world speaks...Western Media look away
You will not find this in the Western news, Cairo is now an armed camp as the army struggle to contain protests which had been called for by the Muslim Brotherhood in support of the people of Gaza. There are protests with people in the thousands in Alexandria and numerous parts of the country calling for a complete cutting of diplomatic ties with Israel, the support of the Gazan's and of Hamas, and the boycotting of all American and European products.
Posted by Maysaloon at 5:34 pm 3 comments
Labels: The Arab world
طارق الحميد, من جريدة الشرق الأوسط السعودية (عميلة لأمريكا) يلوم حزب الله و حماس لأن أسرائيل تقتل الفلسطينيين!؟
.Posted by Maysaloon at 4:49 pm 0 comments
يا سلام على السلام
فلا نامت أعين الجبناء
Reclaiming Samson and Abraham...
Question: What would you do if rockets were raining down on your country every day for years?
Posted by Maysaloon at 2:55 pm 11 comments
Labels: Ramblings
Some tidbits
The Guardian reports, "Israeli troops enter Gaza". They are not the first to use this phrase, though it is interesting to contrast this with how they described Russia's "entry" into Georgia last year.
Also, the Israeli propaganda machine is in full swing, here is a story on the rabidly Zionist Jerusalem Post,"A Golani soldier managed to single-handedly foil an attempt to kidnap him during nocturnal operations in the Gaza Strip overnight Sunday, Israel Radio reported."
Whilst there are rumours that news of Israeli casualties is being withheld, another lesson learnt from the Israeli defeat in 2006. If you want to see news directly from Hamas, their website is here.
Sunday, January 04, 2009
News updates
The Vichy-like Palestinian Authority has banned any pro-Hamas demonstrations in the West Bank.
Also, the Israeli's appear to have learnt one lesson from their 2006 defeat, underpromise and overdeliver to their people, "The aim isn't to topple Hamas".
(Thanks Serene for both links)
Posted by Maysaloon at 10:59 pm 2 comments
Just like the 2006 war against Lebanon, the Gaza invasion has been planned well in advance and Hamas ending the ceasefire was just the excuse. It is interesting to see how well the Israelis have learned from their 2006 defeat, so far they are applying the same methods they used against Lebanon, ie. inflicting massive damage to infrastucture and killing large amounts of civilians to attempt to draw a wedge between the resistance and the people. They've just started their ground offensive, but unlike in Lebanon, where almost instantly the resistance inflicted heavy casualties, Hamas seems keen on drawing them further into Gaza. They are keeping their cards very close to their chest...Hezbullah are also silent...
.Hypocrisy
I am watching the news here in the United Kingdom and you would not even realise that the entire Arab and Muslim world is boiling. There are demonstrations taking place across Europe, across the Arab world and across the Islamic world. Instead the news anchors pose questions to the Palestinian commentators as to whether they would feel anything for the Israelis living under the threat of Hamas rockets. They forget to mention that those Israeli's are living in the villages, towns and fields that those same Gazan's once lived in. Who are you kidding? Also, Mark Regev, the Australian Zionist spokesperson, is the epitomy of colonialist arrogance.
.Posted by Maysaloon at 10:41 pm 1 comments
Labels: Palestine
The age of defeats is over...
Posted by Maysaloon at 5:15 pm 1 comments
Labels: Colonialism, Israel, Zionism
Saturday, January 03, 2009
Friday, January 02, 2009
الصهيونية البرياطانية
"في بعض الأحيان, يجب على الأصدقاء أن يخبروك حين تتمادى في أعمالك و نحن في الآن في ذلك الحين. سياسة أسرائيل لغزة خاطئة مبدئياً, غير صحيحة في التطبيق و مضرة لعملية السلام في المدى البعيد"
طبعاً هو يكتب و باله مشغول على اسرائيل و ليس للفلسطينيين
Posted by Maysaloon at 12:08 pm 0 comments
Posted by Maysaloon at 12:04 pm 0 comments
Thursday, January 01, 2009
هم أقوياء, لأنا نحن سمحنا لهم ذلك, ليس الا
Posted by Maysaloon at 1:13 pm 5 comments
عن غزة و الغرب
Posted by Maysaloon at 12:51 pm 0 comments