Ramzy Baroud

A precious moment has been squandered, as Palestinian Authority President, Mahmoud Abbas, had the chance to right a historical wrong, by reinstating Palestinian national priorities at the United Nations Security Council on February 11, through a political discourse that is completely independent from Washington and its allies. For a long time, Abbas has been a … Continue reading “Abbas’ UN Speech and the Breakdown of Palestinian Politics”

After several postponements, US President, Donald Trump, has finally revealed the details of his Middle East plan, dubbed "Deal of the Century", in a press conference in Washington on January 28. Standing triumphantly beside Trump, Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, must have surely understood that the timing of the announcement, only a few weeks before … Continue reading “Crisis and Opportunity: The ‘Deal of the Century’ Challenge for Palestinians”

A seemingly ordinary news story, published in the Israeli newspaper, Haaretz, on January 7, shed light on a long-forgotten, yet crucial, subject: Israel’s so-called "firing zones" in the West Bank. "Israel has impounded the only vehicle available to a medical team that provides assistance to 1,500 Palestinians living inside an Israeli military firing zone in … Continue reading “Sealed Off and Forgotten: Israel’s ‘Firing Zones’ in the West Bank”

What is Gaza to us but an Israeli missile, a rudimentary rocket, a demolished home, an injured child being whisked away by his peers under a hail of bullets? On a daily basis, Gaza is conveyed to us as a bloody image or a dramatic video, none of which can truly capture the everyday reality … Continue reading “On the Road to Gaza: The Freedom Flotilla Will Sail Again”

Three years ago, the United Nations Security Council passed Resolution 2334. With fourteen members voting in favor and one abstention, the Resolution was the equivalent of a political earthquake. Indeed, it was the first time in many years that Israel was roundly condemned by the international body for its illegal settlement policies in the Occupied … Continue reading “How UN Resolution 2334 Accelerated Israel’s Colonization in the West Bank”

It is hardly surprising to see Middle Eastern countries at the bottom of the World Press Freedom Index, as the worst violators of freedom of the press. But equally alarming is the complete polarization of public opinion as a result of self-serving media and, bankrolled by rich Arab countries, whose only goal is to serve … Continue reading “Money, Power, and Turf: Winning the Middle East Media War at Any Cost”

It is hardly shocking that the United States government has finally decreed that illegal Jewish settlements which have been built in defiance of international law, are, somehow, "consistent" with international law.  US foreign policy has been edging closer towards this conclusion for some time. Since his advent to the White House in January 2017, President … Continue reading “The Real Danger of the US Normalizing Israeli Settlements”

An Israeli attack on Gaza was imminent, and not because of any provocations by Palestinian groups in the besieged, impoverished Gaza Strip. The Israeli military escalation was foreseeable because it factors neatly in Israel’s contentious political scene. The war was not a question of “if”, but “when”. The answer came on November 12, when the … Continue reading “How Western Media Bias Allows Israel To Get Away With Murder in Gaza”

The release on November 6 of two Jordanian nationals, Heba al-Labadi and Abdul Rahman Mi’ri from Israeli prisons was a bittersweet moment. The pair were finally reunited with their families after harrowing experiences in Israel. Sadly, thousands of Palestinian prisoners are still denied their freedom, still subjected to all sorts of hardships at the hands … Continue reading “A Lesson for the Palestinian Leadership: The Reasons Behind Israel’s Arrest and Release of Jordanian Citizens”

The act of Palestinian activists covering their faces during anti-Israeli occupation rallies is an old practice that spans decades. The masking of the face, often by Kufyias – traditional Palestinian scarves that grew to symbolize Palestinian resistance – is far from being a fashion statement. Instead, it is a survival technique, without it, activists are … Continue reading “Microsoft Should Not Fund Israeli Spying on Palestinians”