Ramzy Baroud

On January 11, the Israeli Lod District Court ruled against a Palestinian filmmaker, Mahmoud Bakri, ordering him to pay hefty compensation to an Israeli soldier who was accused, along with the Israeli military, of carrying out war crimes in April 2002, in the Palestinian Jenin refugee camp located in the northern occupied West Bank. The … Continue reading “Fearing the Palestinian Narrative: Why Israel Banned Jenin Jenin“

In an interview with the British newspaper, The Times, in 2015, former US Defense Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, vehemently denied that exporting democracy to Iraq was the main motive behind the US invasion of that Arab country 12 years earlier. Rumsfeld further alleged that "the idea that we could fashion a democracy in Iraq seemed to … Continue reading “By ‘Force and Fraud’: Is This the End of the US Democracy Doctrine?”

Israel’s decision to exclude Palestinians from its COVID-19 vaccination campaign may have surprised many. Even by Israel’s poor humanitarian standards, denying Palestinians access to life-saving medication seems extremely callous. Amnesty International, among many organizations, condemned the Israeli government’s decision to bar Palestinians from receiving the vaccine. The rights group described the Israeli action as evidence … Continue reading “Covid-19 Under Apartheid: How Israel Manipulates Suffering of Palestinians”

2020 will go down in history as the year that terminated the American-sponsored "peace process". While 2021 will not reverse the monumental change in the US attitude and objectives in Palestine, Israel and the Middle East, the new year presents Palestinians with the opportunity to think outside the American box. The previous year began with … Continue reading “2021: Palestine’s Chance of Fighting Back”

On December 21, the United States Congress passed the COVID-19 Relief Package, as part of a larger $2.3 trillion bill meant to cover spending for the rest of the fiscal year. As usual, US representatives allocated a massive sum of money for Israel. While unemployment, thus poverty, in the US is skyrocketing as a result … Continue reading “The US Money Tree: The Untold Story of American Aid to Israel”

It is convenient to surmise that Israel’s current political crisis is consistent with the country’s unfailing trajectory of short-lived governments and fractious ruling coalitions. While this view is somewhat defensible, it is also hasty. Israel is currently at the cusp of a fourth general election in less than two years. Even by Israel’s political standards, … Continue reading “A Country in Turmoil: Why Netanyahu Is a Symptom, Not Cause of Israel’s Political Crisis”

December 8 came and went as if it was an ordinary day. For Palestinian political groups, it was another anniversary to be commemorated, however hastily. It was on this day, thirty-three years ago, that the First Palestinian Intifada (uprising) broke out, and there was nothing ordinary about this historic event. Today, the uprising is merely … Continue reading “When the People Rose: How the Intifada Changed the Political Discourse Around Palestine”

No one seemed as excited about the election of Joe Biden being the next President of the United States as Palestinian Authority President, Mahmoud Abbas. When all hope seemed lost, where Abbas found himself desperate for political validation and funds, Biden arrived like a conquering knight on a white horse and swept the Palestinian leader … Continue reading “‘Long Live the (Dead) Peace Process’: Abbas Prioritizes US Ties over Palestinian National Unity”

Right-wing Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has nothing to worry about as the man who will directly handle America’s foreign policy in the Middle East is a loyal friend of Israel. Crisis averted. President-elect, Joe Biden’s appointment of Antony J. Blinken as his Secretary of State was a master stroke, according to the Biden Administration. … Continue reading “The King’s Man: Blinken’s Appointment Reassures Israel That Little Will Change Under Biden”

Once again, Europe’s top diplomats expressed their "deep concern" regarding Israel’s ongoing illegal settlement expansion, again evoking the maxim that Israeli actions "threaten the viability of the two-state solution". This position was communicated by EU Foreign Affairs Chief, Josep Borrell, on November 19, during a video-conference with Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister, Riyad al-Maliki. All Israeli … Continue reading “Moving Past Apartheid: One-State Is Not Ideal Justice, but It Is Just and Possible”