Jonathan Cook

Jonathan Cook is a writer and journalist based in Nazareth, Israel. His latest books are Israel and the Clash of Civilizations: Iraq, Iran, and the Plan to Remake the Middle East (Pluto Press) and Disappearing Palestine: Israel's Experiments in Human Despair (Zed Books). Visit his Web site.

Palestinian Prison Break: Israel Has Every Reason To Fear This Bold Move

It would be impossible for Palestinians not to revel in six prisoners carrying out a daring escape from one of Israel’s most secure and modern jails. Israel may be working overtime to demonize the six men as “terrorists”, but for Palestinians, they are among its finest and bravest foot soldiers. They are prisoners of war, … Continue reading “Palestinian Prison Break: Israel Has Every Reason To Fear This Bold Move”

Craig Murray’s Jailing Is the Latest Move To Snuff Out Independent Journalism

Craig Murray, a former ambassador to Uzbekistan, the father of a newborn child, a man in very poor health and one who has no prior convictions, will have to hand himself over to the Scottish police on Sunday morning. He becomes the first person ever to be imprisoned on the obscure and vaguely defined charge … Continue reading “Craig Murray’s Jailing Is the Latest Move To Snuff Out Independent Journalism”

Israel: Racist, Violent Policing Is at the Heart of Apartheid

Police made sweeping arrests of Israel’s large minority of Palestinian citizens after protests rocked the country in May during Israel’s 11-day attack on Gaza. Officers were documented beating demonstrators, and in some cases torturing them while in detention. Police also failed to protect the Palestinian minority from planned, vigilante-style attacks by far-right Jewish extremists. This … Continue reading “Israel: Racist, Violent Policing Is at the Heart of Apartheid”

Israel’s New Government Will Deepen Rifts, Not Heal Them

The photo was unprecedented. It showed Mansour Abbas, leader of an Islamist party for Palestinians in Israel, signing an agreement on Wednesday night to sit in a “government of change” alongside settler leader Naftali Bennett. Caretaker Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will fervently try to find a way to break up the coalition in the next … Continue reading “Israel’s New Government Will Deepen Rifts, Not Heal Them”

Jewish Groups That Aid Israel’s War Crimes Can’t Deny All Responsibility for Those Crimes

Here is something that can be said with great confidence. It is racist – antisemitic, if you prefer – to hold Jews, individually or collectively, accountable for Israel’s crimes. Jews are not responsible for Israel’s war crimes, even if the Israeli state presumes to implicate Jews in its crimes by falsely declaring it represents all … Continue reading “Jewish Groups That Aid Israel’s War Crimes Can’t Deny All Responsibility for Those Crimes”

Jerusalem Protests: The Mob ‘Breaking Faces’ Learned From Israel’s Establishment

Inside the Israeli parliament and out on the streets of Jerusalem, the forces of unapologetic Jewish supremacism are stirring, as a growing section of Israel’s youth tire of the two-faced Jewish nationalism that has held sway in Israel for decades. Last week, Bezalel Smotrich, leader of the far-right Religious Zionism faction, a vital partner if … Continue reading “Jerusalem Protests: The Mob ‘Breaking Faces’ Learned From Israel’s Establishment”

‘Finished With the Bluffing’: Jewish National Fund Goes Public With Its Aid to Settlers

For decades, Jews around the world have cherished the Jewish National Fund’s supposedly “charitable” work buying and managing land in Israel. Generations of Jewish children have been encouraged to drop pennies into its iconic blue collection boxes. The Fund is held in similar high esteem by western governments, which typically subsidize their citizens’ donations to … Continue reading “‘Finished With the Bluffing’: Jewish National Fund Goes Public With Its Aid to Settlers”

The ‘Humanitarian’ Left Still Ignores the Lessons of Iraq, Libya and Syria To Cheer On More War

The instinct among parts of the left to cheerlead the right’s war crimes, so long as they are dressed up as liberal "humanitarianism", is alive and kicking, as Owen Jones revealed in a column last week on the plight of the Uighurs at China’s hands. The "humanitarian war" instinct persists even after two decades of … Continue reading “The ‘Humanitarian’ Left Still Ignores the Lessons of Iraq, Libya and Syria To Cheer On More War”

Israel Is Losing the Fight To Obscure Its Apartheid Character

For more than a decade, a handful of former Israeli politicians and US diplomats identified with what might be termed the “peace process industry” have intermittently warned that, without a two-state solution, Israel is in danger of becoming an “apartheid state”. The most notable among them include Ehud Barak and Ehud Olmert, two former Israeli … Continue reading “Israel Is Losing the Fight To Obscure Its Apartheid Character”

The US and UK Are Making Assange’s Death More Likely

There was a hope in some quarters after Judge Vanessa Baraitser ruled on Monday against an application to extradite Julian Assange to the US, where he faced being locked away for the rest of his life, that she might finally be changing tack. Washington has wanted Assange permanently silenced and made an example of – … Continue reading “The US and UK Are Making Assange’s Death More Likely”