Middle East Research and Information Project

Critical Coverage of the Middle East Since 1971

Michael R. Fischbach

Michael R. Fischbach is professor of history at Randolph-Macon College in Ashland, Virginia, and author of Jewish Property Claims Against Arab Countries (Columbia University Press, 2008).

MER Article

Jewish Property Claims and Post-Qaddafi Libya

As Libya looks to its future, one chapter from its past already has reared its head, one that could touch on everything from finances to future relations, if any, with Israel: the fate of the country’s former Jewish population. The highly publicized return to his native land made by

Michael R. Fischbach • 8 min read

MER Article

Claiming Jewish Communal Property in Iraq

On June 23, 2008, representatives of Iraqi Jewish communities in several countries met in London to form a new group, the World Organization of Jews from Iraq (WOJI). According to a press release issued shortly after the meeting, the purpose of WOJI was to “protect, preserve and promote Jewish commu

Michael R. Fischbach • 11 min read

MER Article

Documenting Land Ownership in the Palestinian Authority

The Protocol Concerning Civil Affairs, an annex to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement on the West Bank and the Gaza Strip of September 1995, formalized the process by which Israeli authorities would transfer responsibility over land matters to the Palestinian Authority (PA). The first Oslo ag

Michael R. Fischbach • 5 min read

MER Article

Palestinian Land Documents

Far from the glare of the media attention, on dusty shelves lining the basement of the Jordanian Department of Lands and Survey in Amman, lies a key to the political and economic viability of the Palestinian entity which may emerge out of the Oslo accords. Scores of folders documenting the details o

Michael R. Fischbach • 3 min read