Alternet by Stephen Zunes, June 25, 2002 [source]
President George W. Bush’s speech on Monday actually represents a setback for Middle East peace. On the one hand, it is reassuring that, after thirty years of rejecting the international consensus that peace requires the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside a secure Israel, an American president now formally recognizes that need. The bad news is that President Bush is simply perpetuating the unfair assumption that while Israel’s right to exist is a given, Palestine’s right to exist… is conditional…
Category: Alternet
Alternet
Aiding the War Effort
Alternet May 10, 2002 by Stephen Zunes
[source is no longer available]
The violence of the past year and a half between Israelis and Palestinians has left more than 2,000 people dead, torpedoed the peace process, and turned the streets of the West Bank and Gaza Strip into battlefields. As the U.S. reconsiders its role in promoting Israeli-Palestinian peace, the prospects for a final settlement that recognizes the security needs of Israel and the legitimate political rights of Palestinians seem worse than ever…
Congress Attacks Human Rights
Alternet by Stephen Zunes May 3, 2002
[source is no longer available]
On Thursday, both the House of Representative and the U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passed resolutions defending the policies of right-wing Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon in the occupied territories. Human rights activists are alarmed, both at the strong Congressional support for a repressive military occupation and the fact the resolutions are being widely interpreted as an attack on the credibility of Amnesty International and other human rights groups. Last month, Amnesty International published a detailed and well-documented report…
A New Path to Peace
Alternet by Stephen Zunes, February 12, 2002
[Source] The tragic events of September 11 have created unprecedented challenges for the peace movement, anti-interventionist forces, and other progressive activists. For the first time in the lives of most Americans, the U.S. has found itself under attack. After more than fifty years of fabricated and exaggerated threats to national security put forward by the U.S. government, academia, and the media to justify military interventionism abroad…
10 Things to Know About the Middle East
Alternet by Stephen Zunes October 1, 2001 [Source]
1. Who are the Arabs?
2. Who are the Muslims?
3. Why is there so much violence and political instability?
4. Why has the Middle East been the focus of U.S. concern about international terrorism?
5. What kind of political systems and alliances exist in the Middle East?
6. What is the impact of oil in the Middle East?
7. What is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict about?
8. What has been the legacy of the Gulf War?
9. How has the political situation in Afghanistan evolved and how is it connected to the Middle East?
10. How have most Middle Eastern governments reacted to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and their aftermath?
10 Things to Know about U.S. Policy in the Middle East
Alternet September 26, 2001 by Stephen Zunes
1. The United States has played a major role in the militarization of the region.
2. The U.S. maintains an ongoing military presence in the Middle East.
3. There has been an enormous humanitarian toll resulting from U.S. policy toward Iraq.
4. The U.S. has not been a fair mediator in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
5. U.S. support for Israel occupation forces has created enormous resentment throughout the Middle East.
6. The U.S. has been inconsistent in its enforcement of international law and UN Security Council resolutions.
7. The U.S. has supported autocratic regimes in the Middle East.
8. U.S. policy has contributed to the rise of radical Islamic governments and movements.
9. The U.S. promotion of a neo-liberal economic model in the Middle East has not benefitted most people of the region.
10. The U.S. response to Middle Eastern terrorism has thus far been counter-productive.
Don’t Bomb Afghanistan
Alternet September 19, 2001 by Stephen Zunes [source]
It appears that the United States is preparing for a major military strike against Afghanistan. There is no question that the United States needs to respond forcefully to bring the perpetrators of last week’s terrorist attack to justice and to prevent future attacks. A large-scale military action against that country, however, would be a big mistake. We are not fighting a government with clear fixed targets, such as command and control centers, intelligence headquarters or major military complexes. A loose network of terrorist cells does not have the kind of tangible assets that can be seriously crippled by military strikes…
Dangerous Times for U.S. Foreign Policy
Alternet September 14, 2001 by Stephen Zunes [source]
The tragic events of September 11 have brought out both the best of America and the worst of America. The former is represented by the heroism of the rescuers, the thousands of people lining up to donate blood, and the response of the religious community through prayer vigils and memorial services. The latter is represented by the jingoism, militarism and xenophobia exhibited from the street to the talk shows. Early indications are that U.S. foreign policy in the aftermath of the attacks is going to be most effected by the latter…
U.S. Policy Toward Political Islam
Alternet.org, September 12, 2001, by Stephen Zunes The perceived growth of radical Islamic movements throughout the Middle East and beyond has not only caused major political upheaval in the countries directly affected but has placed political Islam at the forefront of concerns voiced by U.S. policymakers. One unfortunate aspect of this newfound attention has been the way it has strengthened ugly stereotypes of Muslims already prevalent in the West. This occurs despite the existence of moderate Islamic segments and secular movements that are at least as influential as radicals in the political life of Islamic countries. Even though the vast majority of the world’s Muslims oppose terrorism, religious intolerance, and the oppression of women, these remain the most prevalent images of the Muslim faith throughout the Western world. Such popular misconceptions about Islam and Islamic movements—often exacerbated by the media, popular culture, and government officials—have made it particularly difficult to challenge U.S. policy.