Free Republic

Being a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Philippines, nor or less a Republican Peace Corps Volunteer, its been tough not having many people who can side with you in your corner. I'm not talking about the local Filipino population who are in fact very Pro-Bush but the other PCV's who want nothing more than a Bush defeat. For them, its not being Pro-Kerry but rather ABB (Anybody But Bush). And its even harder when I am forced to rely on CNN International and BBC World for my news sources (My how much I miss Sean Hannity and Cal Thomas!). Still,...

Aug. 7, 2004 12:09 Suha Arafat blames Sharon for all her problems By DOUGLAS DAVIS Advertisement Pity Mister Palestine. He is looking less the tragic King Lear these days than the mad King Canute, standing on the sea shore and ordering the tide to turn back. Even his most admiring devotees are having difficulty discerning the Mandela struggling to emerge from his trademark olive drab. So, while the world leaders take off for their lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer, Yasser ("what crisis?") Arafat remains entombed in Ramallah, beset by dissent in Gaza, threats of revolt in the West Bank,...

Poll Shows Growing Arab Rancor at US By Dafna Linzer The Washington Post July 23, 2004 Arab views of the United States, shaped largely by the Iraq war and a post-Sept. 11 climate of fear, have worsened in the past two years to such an extent that in Egypt -- an important ally in the region -- nearly 100 percent of the population now holds an unfavorable opinion of the country, according to two polls due out today. Both surveys were conducted in June by Zogby International and polled Arab men and women in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco...

Arab American Organizations Call for Administrative Action -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- May 20, 2004 We, the undersigned organizations, strongly condemn Israel’s recent indiscriminate killings of innocent Palestinians, including many children. In particular, we cite the May 19, 2004 Israeli strike on peaceful demonstrators resulting in the death of at least 20 innocent Palestinians. In addition, we denounce the demolition of Palestinian homes in Gaza’s Rafah refugee camp. As a result of Israeli’s demolition policy, dozens of homes have been bulldozed, forcing Palestinians into homelessness at a rate of one every five minutes, totaling 1,000 in the past four days. This represents a 2500%...

"Army & Arabs"…New Palestinian Game A Palestinian boy plays the role of an Israeli soldier By Atef Daghlas, IOL Correspondent NABLUS, May 5 (IslamOnline.net) – Thirteen-year-old Fatihbellah threw a grain of sand at a group of children who blacked out immediately to be later handcuffed and taken to custody at gunpoint. This was only the Palestinian version of hide-and-seek. Calling their trademark game "Army and Arabs", the Palestinian children do not have to be innovative to play the game. They do not even have to watch American action movies with their spectacular stunts. The have an Israeli occupation already. But...

<p>When Secretary of State Colin Powell (news - web sites) arrived here last month, it seemed there were no limits to the blossoming new relationship between the U.S. and India.</p> <p>Hailing the "strategic partnership" recently formed between the two countries, Powell declared that the United States and India are "enjoying perhaps the best relationship that has existed between our two great democracies in many, many years--if not in history."</p>

Remembering Rachel A year ago, Rachel Corrie was killed while defending Palestinian homes from destruction in Gaza. The world was shocked. A resolution has been introduced in the House of Representatives commemorating her death, expressing sympathy for Rachel’s loved ones, and calling for an independent investigation, but it is stalled. On the anniversary of her death this week, newspapers around the nation featured editorials commemorating Rachel Corrie. The exception was the Wall Street Journal… Simply Disgraceful An appalling piece in the Wall Street Journal this week written by Israeli translator, editor, and writer Ruhama Shattan. Its sole purpose is to...

Still No Justice for Rachel Corrie - Smith -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Friday, January 23 2004 @ 12:57 PM EST "It is an insult to the human heart to have to force government officials to do their jobs properly while digesting the fact your child has been brutally killed .." By WENDY SMITH Tom Hurndall, a 22-year-old British peace activist, died last week in a London hospital. He was shot in the head by Israeli sniper fire nine months ago while shepherding Palestinian children in the Gaza Strip out of the line of fire. He had been in a coma since his injury....

The Zionist Fingerprint on the Post-September 11 World - Book Review -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sunday, January 11 2004 @ 06:42 PM EST Visit www.palestinebooks.com to order the book "A must-read for anyone interested in the present and future course of US-Muslim relations in the post-September 11 world .." Published by the United Association for Studies and Research (UASR) This book – by Dr. Ahmed Yousef, with introductions by Congressman Paul Findley, Rabbi David Yisroel Weiss, and Attorney Stanley Cohen - was written to shine a light on two current trends affecting the course of America's relations with the Middle East region. The...

Abe Foxman Shilling for the Sharon Gang, Again - Hughes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sunday, January 04 2004 @ 08:35 PM EST "The ADL boss thinks this so-called Geneva Accord is all part of a sinister plot to 'disrespect Israel’s democratic institutions'.." By WILLIAM HUGHES The Palestine Chronicle Americans almost made it through the year without being subjected to yet another boring spiel from the Anti-Defamation League’s chief honcho and know-it-all, Abe Foxman. Unfortunately, on Dec. 27, 2003, the “Washington Post,” opened its Op Ed Page to the old windbag. If there was any justice left in the world, it should have made...

Saddam Threatens to Expose US -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Friday, December 26 2003 @ 04:46 PM EST Former Iraqi president threatens to expose the US government’s behind-the-scene role in the occupation of Kuwait "According to the European source close to US investigators, Saddam also said that he would ask the International Court of Justice in The Hague to try the US for its crimes against the Iraqi people .." By P.K. Abdul Ghafour JEDDAH - Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, now being grilled by American investigators, has reportedly warned US authorities that he will expose Washington’s “political games” and its behind-the-scene role in...

Hamas Members Mark Christmas, Santa Style -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Friday, December 26 2003 @ 04:58 PM EST Arafat's Kefiyeh marks his empty chair at the Midnight Mass in Bethlehem (AFP) "It is a humanitarian national initiative that we really appreciate," Atallah Hannah of the Greek Orthodox Church in occupied Jerusalem told IslamOnline.net. By YASSER AL BANNA GAZA CITY - A group of Islamic resistance movement Hamas in Bethlehem put on the famous red and white fur Santa hats and Santa suits, dropping gifts on Christian orphans, in a token of religious tolerance where the Christian tradition has it Jesus was born on...

MARCH 20, 2004: GLOBAL DAY OF ACTION on the FIRST ANNIVERSARY of the U.S. BOMBING and INVASION of IRAQ * BRING the TROOPS HOME NOW! * END the OCCUPATION of IRAQ! * MONEY for JOBS, EDUCATION, HEALTHCARE and HOUSING - NOT WAR! On March 20, 2004, protests will take place all around the world on the one year anniversary of the U.S. bombing and invasion of Iraq. People are organizing on a global scale to demand an end to the occupation of Iraq and an immediate withdrawal of U.S. military forces from the country. DOWNLOADABLE FLYER: An easily-downloadable initial flyer...

Muslims In France By Juliane Hammer Islam Online, Berlin, Germany Muslim immigrants to France came mainly from Algeria until the early sixties, which was still a French colony at that time. French employers preferred workers from Southern European countries, but the Algerian men mostly kept on crossing the Mediterranean. As France traditionally had no coordinated labor immigration policy, workers kept on coming from other North African countries such as Morocco and Tunisia as well. In response to economic periods of depression such as in 1974, the border controls were rapidly tightened, but in the late eighties, the government had to...

Mussa: Impose Sanctions against Israel, not Syria -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Friday, November 14 2003 @ 01:44 AM EST Amr Mussa "Mussa said: 'Israel must be condemned and questioned for the long term occupation of Arab nations' lands, state sponsored terrorism, genocide of Palestinians, and imposing a serious threat against the regional and global security ..'" DAMASCUS - Arab League Secretary General Amr Mussa, denouncing the US Senate for approving a legislation providing for tough sanctions against Syria on Tuesday, argued on Wednesday, that sanctions need to be imposed against Israel and not Syria. According to Syria’s official news agency SANA from Cairo,...

Truth is Least Pertinent in the Gaza Bombing Case -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sunday, October 19 2003 @ 03:33 PM EDT "Because of the Israeli attempt to instigate direct US involvement on the ground, the Israeli intelligence very much could have been the perpetrators of the killing of the three Americans in Gaza. While the style of Palestinian bombings are all but a mystery, death by remote control is the Israeli intelligence’s most ideal assassination method.." By RAMZY BAROUD It matters little whether the mastermind behind the killing of three Americans in Gaza on Wednesday, October 15, was a Palestinian group or Israeli...

Corries Reject Israeli Claims about Rachel's Death -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tuesday, September 30 2003 @ 02:41 PM EDT Cindy Corrie, left, and Craig Corrie, the parents of American International Solidarity Movement activist Rachel Corrie answer questions at a news conference in Jerusalem Monday, Sept. 29, 2003. "The Israeli military conducted an 'internal investigation' and said the bulldozer driver could not see Corrie because of the size of the bulldozer and its limited view .." By Lara Sukhtian JERUSALEM (AP) - Parents of an American activist killed earlier this year in Gaza by an Israeli army bulldozer called Monday for an independent U.S....

U.S. Told Why It Is Unloved In Muslim World -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Speaking through videoconference in a hotel conference room Thursday night, September 25, leaders of the largest Muslim organizations in Indonesia asserted it was not a public relations problem .." JAKARTA - The United States is unloved in the Muslim world due to its policy in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, occupation of Iraq and its preoccupation with fundamentalists, a group of Muslim intellectuals told U.S. officials and experts, who wanted to know the reason behind rising anti-U.S. sentiments among Muslims, reported a leading U.S. newspaper. Speaking through videoconference in a hotel conference...

AAI Mourns Professor Edward Said -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- September 25, 2003 WASHINGTON - It is with great sorrow that the Arab American Institute mourns the loss of Professor Edward Said. A prolific writer and lecturer, he leaves Americans, and the world, a legacy of profound scholarship on music, literature, history and the struggle for Palestine. During the course of his life, Professor Said articulated a vision of Palestine and the Arab world that not only recalled the significant contributions of the region’s people but also offered hope for the future. In doing so, he countered the institutionalized anti-Arab bias, which prevails in...

Sharansky says campus is 'real' Israeli-Palestinian battlefied By Haaretz Service The real Israeli-Palestinian battlefield is on university campuses, Minister without Portfolio Natan Sharansky said Friday, the day after a Jewish pro-Palestinian activist threw a cream pie in the minister’s face as he was about to begin a lecture at a New Jersey university. “The real battlefield is [on] campus,” Sharansky told Israel Radio on Friday. Both Palestinians and Jews were protesting Sharansky’s speech at Rutgers University on “Human rights, justice and democracy – a Jewish approach,” one leg of a United States speaking tour. The Palestinians were calling Israel a...