Uri Avnery

Uri Avnery is a longtime Israeli peace activist. Since 1948 he has advocated the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel. In 1974, Uri Avnery was the first Israeli to establish contact with the PLO leadership. In 1982 he was the first Israeli ever to meet Yasser Arafat, after crossing the lines in besieged Beirut. He served three terms in the Israeli Knesset and is the founder of Gush Shalom (Peace Bloc). Visit his Web site.

A Cloud Over Jerusalem

Everyone has the right to change his or her mind. Even Danny Tirzeh. Col. Tirzeh was responsible for planning the wall that “envelopes” Jerusalem – the one that cuts the city off from the West Bank in order to turn it into the United Capital of Israel for All Eternity. And now, suddenly, Tirzeh pops … Continue reading “A Cloud Over Jerusalem”

In the Name of Zionism

Israel is a Zionist state. Everybody knows that. There is no (Jewish) politician in Israel who misses an opportunity to repeat this. Last week, when we celebrated the 62nd Independence Day, we were flooded by a deluge of patriotic speeches. Each of the Ciceros, without exception, declared his total commitment to Zionism. By the way, … Continue reading “In the Name of Zionism”

On the Road to Canossa

In January 1077, King Henry IV walked to Canossa. He crossed the snow-covered Alps barefoot, wearing a penitent monk’s hair shirt, and reached the North-Italian fortress in which the Vicar of God had found refuge. Pope Gregory VII had excommunicated him after a conflict over the right to invest bishops throughout the German Reich. The … Continue reading “On the Road to Canossa”

The Doomsday Weapon

It is already a commonplace to say that people who don’t learn from history are condemned to repeat their mistakes. Some 1,942 years ago, the Jews in the province called Palaestina launched a revolt against the Roman Empire. In retrospect, this looks like an act of madness. Palestine was a small and insignificant part of … Continue reading “The Doomsday Weapon”

Biden Brouhaha: Just a Matter of Bad Timing?

Some weeks the news is dominated by a single word. This week’s word was "timing." It’s all a matter of timing. The government of Israel insulted the vice president of the United States, Joe Biden, one of the greatest "friends" of Israel (meaning: somebody totally subservient to AIPAC), and spat in the face of President … Continue reading “Biden Brouhaha: Just a Matter of Bad Timing?”

Netanyahu’s Stink Bomb

This week the Netanyahu government let off a stink bomb under the chair of Mahmoud Abbas. For months now, Abbas has angered the prime minister. He has refused to start "peace negotiations" while the settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem are continually expanding. Everyone knows that the proposed negotiations are meaningless and will … Continue reading “Netanyahu’s Stink Bomb”

A Four-Letter Word

Many important struggles in Israel are calling out to people of conscience. Among others (in random order): The struggle for preserving the environment and the future of the planet. The struggle for democracy against fascist trends. The struggle for human rights and civil rights. The feminist struggle. The struggle for the rights of gays and … Continue reading “A Four-Letter Word”

The Liebarak

The business is registered in the name of Binyamin Netanyahu. But the reality is different. Netanyahu has never been more than a slick patent-medicine salesman. That is a type that appears frequently in American Westerns and sells an elixir that is good for everything: against the flu and against tuberculosis, against heart attacks and against … Continue reading “The Liebarak”

‘Kill Another Turk…’

I tried to resist the temptation to tell the same classical Jewish joke a second time, but circumstances delivered a plausible excuse. Almost every Jew knows the sentence "Kill a Turk and rest." The whole story goes like this: In Czarist Russia, a Jewish boy is called up for the war against the Turks. His … Continue reading “‘Kill Another Turk…’”