MER Article Dayr Yasin Remembered Noam Chomsky, commenting on the just released book Remembering Deir Yassin, notes that “the Deir Yassin massacre is a bitter symbol of a long history of terror and repression, to which -- to our shame -- we have contributed in many substantial ways, and still do. We should not only remember, but als Phyllis Bennis • 2 min read
MER Article Fifty Years Through the Eyes of "New Historians" in Israel Since the 1980s, professional Israeli scholars have been challenging the official Israeli version of the origins of Zionism and the birth of Israel. The “new historians” view of the past is much closer to the Palestinian historical narrative than to the Zionist one. Their criticisms also correspond to demands and Ilan Pappe • 9 min read
MER Article Countering Israel's Fiftieth on the Internet The struggle over the historical record and popular memory of 1948 has reached the Internet. A number of websites and posted materials devoted to the Palestinian experience in 1948 known as the nakba (national catastrophe) offer a wealth of information to counter the virtual media silence about the Steve Niva • 1 min read
MER Article Democracy or Ethnocracy? In February 1998, President of the Israeli High Court, Aharon Barak, issued a statement explaining the temporary deferral of proceedings on an appeal known as the “Katzir case.” The 1995 appeal was lodged by an Arab citizen who was prohibited, because of his non-Jewish status, from leasing state land. [1] Oren Yiftachel • 18 min read
MER Article Alternatives to an International Criminal Court A scene toward the end of the documentary film Calling the Ghosts shows two Muslim women from Bosnia, survivors of the Serbian concentration camp of Omarska, looking through a rack of postcards. They have come to The Hague to testify about their experiences at the war crimes tribunal for the former Lisa Hajjar • 6 min read
MER Article Constructing an International Criminal Court From June 15 until July 17, 1998, diplomats from around the world are assembling an International Criminal Court (ICC). Complementing the International Court of Justice in the Hague, which hears disputes between governments, the ICC would investigate and try individuals accused of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. An Joe Stork • 6 min read
MER Article From the Editor (Summer 1998) This issue of Middle East Report is intended as a counterpoint to the celebrations of Israel’s fiftieth anniversary and Zionism’s one hundredth. In representing perspectives that have not been addressed during these celebrations, we emphasize those people who have been victimized, marginalized and excluded by the creation of Geoff Hartman • 2 min read