Stephen Zunes : Israel and Palestine
Trump’s Far-Right Israel Stance Creates an Opening for the Left
17 February 2017
It was a surreal scene: On February 15, President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met in Washington, D.C. and spoke of their “shared values” which have “advanced the cause of human freedom, dignity and peace,” while at the same time retreating from the longstanding call for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian […]
Fordham ban of Palestine group contradicts free speech, Jesuit values
9 February 2017
Perhaps it is a sign that we are indeed in the age of Trump when a Jesuit university bans a student organization with “justice” in its name. Although Students for Justice in Palestine went through all the required procedures and obtained approval from the student government, Fordham University in New York has prohibited the group’s […]
Stephen Zunes: Panetta’s first foreign policy vote sides with Trump
13 January 2017
In the first foreign policy vote of his congressional career, newly elected Democratic Rep. Jimmy Panetta, D-Carmel Valley, shocked many of his constituents by siding with President-elect Donald Trump against President Barack Obama on the question of the role of the United Nations and international humanitarian law.
Once Again, Democrats Are Blowing It on Middle East Peace
11 January 2017
In the first major foreign policy vote of the new Congress, most Democrats sided with Donald Trump — and against international law — on Israeli settlements.
Hope fades for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
10 January 2017
The election of Donald Trump may mark the end of any realistic hope of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. And don’t expect the Democratic Party to try to save it, it appears.
Obama’s Support for International Law Draws Bipartisan Ire
29 December 2016
Here’s one way to look at it: The United States was the only country in the fifteen-member U.N. Security Council that did not support a resolution passed last week criticizing Israel for continuing to expand illegal settlements in the occupied territories.
Trump’s Frightening Picks for U.S. Policy in the Middle East
22 December 2016
Among the many disturbing appointments by President-elect Donald Trump are the people charged with conducting U.S. policy in the Middle East. Trump’s ignorance of the region will make him even more dependent on his advisers than most Presidents. And that’s not good news.
Discerning Real from False Claims of Anti-Semitism in the Pro-Palestinian Movement
18 July 2016
As the U.S. movement in support of Palestinian rights gains momentum, it has come under increasing attack by supporters of Israel’s right-wing government and defenders of its occupation and colonization of occupied territory. For example, governors, state legislatures, and members of Congress of both major parties have referred to efforts to use such tactics as […]
Defending Israel’s Attacks on Civilians—A Harbinger for Clinton’s Presidency?
26 May 2016
A fight is brewing as Democrats prepare to debate U.S. policy on Israel at their national convention in July. Bernie Sanders’ appointees to the platform committee Cornel West and James Zogby plan to challenge the party establishment’s uncritical support for an increasingly aggressive, right wing Israeli government.
Hillary and Bernie Part Ways on Israel
18 April 2016
The foreign policy divide between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders could not have been more obvious than in last week’s debate in Brooklyn when the moderator brought forward the issue of Israel and Palestine. The answers they gave not only revealed differing emphases among two politicians who both strongly identify as being “pro-Israel,” it revealed a striking contrast regarding the role the United States should play as a mediator in international conflicts and attitudes towards international humanitarian law.
