Jonathan Cook

In which country did a senior, state-salaried cleric urge his followers last month to become “warriors”, emulating a group of young men who had murdered a woman of another faith? The cleric did so with impunity. In fact, he was only echoing other highly placed colleagues who have endorsed a book – again without penalty … Continue reading “How the Rule of the Rabbis Is Fueling a Holy War in Israel”

You might imagine that a report by a multinational observer force documenting a 20-year reign of terror by Israeli soldiers and Jewish settlers against Palestinians, in a city under occupation, would provoke condemnation from European and US politicians. But you would be wrong. The leaking in December of the report on conditions in the city … Continue reading “In Hebron, Israel Removes the Last Restraint on Its Settlers’ Reign of Terror”

With April’s elections looming, Benjamin Netanyahu has good reason to fear Benny Gantz, his former army chief. Gantz has launched a new party, named Israeli Resilience, just as the net of corruption indictments is closing around the prime minister. Already, at this early stage of campaigning, some 31 per cent of the Israeli public prefer … Continue reading “Israeli General Mounts Challenge to Netanyahu by Flaunting Gaza Carnage”

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu commandeered the country’s airwaves last week in what many assumed would prove a moment of profound national import. They could not have been more wrong. The context was his decision last month to move forward the general election to April, widely seen as a desperate effort to turn the vote … Continue reading “Israeli Politics Enter Grubby Realm of Reality TV”

Two years of Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu as a Middle East peacemaking team appear to be having a transformative effect – and in ways that will please neither of them. The American public is now evenly split between those who want a two-state solution and those who prefer a single state, shared by Israelis … Continue reading “Growing US Support for One State Falls on Deaf Ears”

Czech president Milos Zeman offered Benjamin Netanyahu’s ultra-nationalist government a fillip during his visit to Israel last week. He inaugurated a cultural and trade center, Czech House, just outside Jerusalem’s Old City walls. At the opening, he expressed hope it would serve as a precursor to his country relocating its embassy from Tel Aviv to … Continue reading “Israel’s New War of Attrition on Jerusalem’s Palestinians”

It is welcome that finally there has been a little pushback, including from leading journalists, to the Guardian’s long-running vilification of Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks. Reporter Luke Harding’s latest article, claiming that Donald Trump’s disgraced former campaign manager Paul Manafort secretly visited Assange in Ecuador’s embassy in London on three occasions, is so … Continue reading “Guardian Escalates Its Vilification of Julian Assange”

Palestinians in Gaza should have been able to breathe a sigh of relief last week, as precarious ceasefire talks survived a two-day-long, heavy exchange of strikes that threatened to unleash yet another large-scale military assault by Israel. Late on Tuesday, after the most intense bout of violence in four years, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu … Continue reading “Netanyahu’s Ceasefire Is Meant To Keep Gaza Imprisoned”

The victory of Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil’s presidential election last week has won Israel a passionate new friend on the international stage. The world’s fifth-most populous nation will now be “colored in blue and white”, an Israeli official said, referring to the colors of Israel’s flag. The Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu immediately called to … Continue reading “With Brazil’s Bolsonaro, Israel Finds Another Natural Partner on the Far-Right”

The moment long feared is fast approaching in Gaza, according to a new report by the World Bank. After a decade-long Israeli blockade and a series of large-scale military assaults, the economy of the tiny coastal enclave is in “freefall”. At a meeting of international donors in New York on Thursday, coinciding with the annual … Continue reading “Everyone Washes Their Hands as Gaza’s Economy Goes Into Freefall”