Peter Beinart was in Israel following the publication of his explosive article, “The Failure of the American Jewish Establishment”, in June. Ofri Ilani reports in Haaretz: “The responses to the article demonstrated to Beinart the depth of the resentment against the Zionist establishment within the Jewish community. ‘There is a lot of anguish among American Jews, among liberal American Jews − but most American Jews are liberal,” he says in an interview conducted in Tel Aviv last week. “Many American Jews feel unhappy, uncomfortable with some of what they see Israel doing. They feel very upset about it, and they want the opportunity to express that. And they want to be able to do it without being told that they’re anti-Israel or self-hating Jews, or whatever. I think, particularly, for younger American Jews, that’s the case.’…”

B’Tselem’s new interactive review for 2009-2010 provides a comprehensive overview of human rights in the Occupied Territories, highlighting personal stories and documentary footage.

Allan C. Brownfeld reports from the US: “The charge of “delegitimization,” it is clear, is simply a well-coordinated campaign to avoid a real discussion of the Israeli policies which have led to a rift with the U.S. and are contrary to any movement toward real peace. Just as the repeated charge of “anti-Semitism” has failed to silence critics, so will the robotic use of the term “delegitimization.” The stakes are too high–for the U.S., for the Palestinians, for the real best interests of Israel–to permit any such effort to stifle free and open discussion to succeed.”

Oxfam called upon the Israeli government to compensate Palestinian villagers after the Israeli army demolished 79 structures in the village of Al Farisiya in the West Bank on Monday, forcing families into further impoverishment after years of harassment. Many have lived there for decades, but last year the Israeli military posted a sign last year declaring the area a ‘military zone’…

Parry’s photographs vividly convey what he calls the “kaleidoscopic” impact of the artwork on the wall. There’s an amazing range of styles, from painterly expressionism through pop art parody and cartoon minimalism. Desperate pleas for help and solidarity (“EU, UN where are you?”) alternate with expressions of misery (“Dead city”, “No hope”), political indictments (“This is a land grab”) and dead pan, sometimes cryptic irony (“Here is a wall”, “I want my ball back!”, “Been there done that”, “Nothing to see here”). A white dove lies speared and bleeding…

Tony Lerman writes: “David Cameron’s description of Gaza as a “prison camp” and his strong condemnation of Israel over the Turkish Gaza flotilla has, predictably, angered some commentators and politicians and pleased others. But if those who attacked his words, like Stuart Polak, director of the Conservative Friends of Israel, believe they are reflecting popular opinion among British Jews, they are wrong—according to the latest survey evidence…”

A letter opposing the proposed changes to the issue of arrest warrants in private prosecutions for international crimes signed by Daniel Machover, Geoffrey Bindman and others, was published in today’s Guardian. Diana Neslen signed on behalf of JfJfP.

Gadi Algazi writes: What are the Bedouin accused of? How did their very existence become a “real threat”? The Negev, says Netanyahu, might become a “region without a Jewish majority.” This is truly a good one: you can move from region to the next throughout the country and discover that in a particular area within Israel, there isn’t a Jewish majority, for example between Kafr Qara’ and Umm al-Fahem, or between Sakhnin and ‘Arabe. Well, then don’t we have to do something against this threat? Yes, of course, and so we do! [...]

The demolition of more than 40 houses in the unrecognized Bedouin village of Araqib in the Negev desert on Tuesday has triggered fears for the future of other Bedouin communities, who see Araqib as a test case in the long-standing struggle against Israeli government attempts to ‘judaise’ the Negev…

The Coalition government last week threw the Israel lobby a coveted prize: a promise to change the law on universal jurisdiction. But Cameron is making it clear that he is no easy pushover for the lobby. On his visit to Turkey he condemned Israel’s Gaza policy in very strong terms. The Board of Deputies is very unhappy, as shown by its one sentence response; and Conservative Friends of Israel are going up the wall…
It may just be a sign that Britain – together with the EU – is distancing itself a little from the US in this arena.

We are inundated with human-interest stories about the life of individuals and communities under the Israeli occupation. What they generally have in common is the pointless humiliation and destruction that has become part of daily life for so many Palestinians, and the inability of the Israeli soldiers and military administration to see them as fully human. Sometimes they are lighter and more optimistic.

We will carry a regular stories of ‘Life under Occupation’. This, the first of the series, is by David Shulman and provides an evocative account of life in the South Hebron hills.

ACRI lists the most troubling initiatives of the Knesset’s summer session 2010 and warns of an alarming trend taking shape in the current Knesset, which flourished during the last session: the use of democratic processes by the majority, specifically legislation, to hinder freedom of expression, to harm Israel’s system of checks and balances, and to violate the rights of minority groups in Israel…

The Indian Express reports that an Indian vessel named ‘The Audacity of Hope’ is set to join a new international campaign to press for an end to the Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip, months after nine pro-Palestinian activists were killed in an attack on an aid ship bound for Gaza…

The Bil’in struggle continues and every Friday the weekly demonstration against the wall and the confiscation of Bil’in lands takes place. It is documented and a video is made available on YouTube. It usually meets with Israeli tear gas, rubber bullets and arbitrary arrests…

No terrible events this week, at least not ones that have come to our attention, but a range of interesting news items and reflections on issues of importance: Why is it so difficult to criticise Israel in the US? Does Chris Patten’s call for a bolder EU approach herald a shift in government policy? Why are sections of the Israeli right calling for a one-state solution? Is Avrum Burg’s call for a new party dedicated to radical equality between Palestinian and Israeli citizens of Israel a goer? Is it time to apply the words apartheid or fascism? Plus: the Jewish boat to Gaza, Tom Segev reviewing Benny Morris on 1948, and more. For a guide to this week’s postings click on the heading above.

Janan Abdu writes about the persecution of her husband Ameer Makhoul, chair of the Public Committee for the Protection of Political Freedoms and director of Ittijah, the Union of Arab-Based Community Associations, a coalition bringing together 84 nongovernmental organizations. He was arrested, held incommunicado, tortured and is now to be tried for spying. Abdu accuses the Israeli government of trying to break his spirit and refusing him a fair trial…

According to Chris Patten “Israel’s policy of blockading Gaza had been a ‘terrible failure – immoral, illegal and ineffective’, he said, which had ‘deliberately triggered an economic and social crisis which has many humanitarian consequences’.” He calls for a new approach…

• Knesset members, From Kadima to The Kahanists, Signed a bill that says: Boycotting the products Of the settlements Is tantamount to Boycotting the State of Israel, And will be punished. A law that says that The settlements and Israel Are one and the same – Will inevitably intensify The world-wide boycott On the State […]

Chris Spannos tells how a small community group in Woods Hole, Cape Cod started a weekly movie and discussion group in November 2008. Almost 60 films later it has been turfed ouf of its venue the old Woods Hold Firehouse. Why? On 4 June it screened ‘the award winning documentary “Occupation 101: Voices of the Silenced Majority.” It is a film by American brothers Sufyan and Abdallah Omeish that, as the movie’s own description says, “details life under Israeli military rule, the role of the United States in the conflict, and the major obstacles that stand in the way of a lasting and viable peace.”…’

” Therefore, I say that we can look at another option: for Israel to apply its law to Judea and Samaria and grant citizenship to 1.5 million Palestinians.” These remarks, which to many sound subversive, were not voiced by a left-wing advocate of a binational state. The speaker is from the Betar movement, a former top leader in Likud and political patron of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a former defense and foreign affairs minister – Moshe Arens…
Ali Abunimah welcomes this development; Uri Avnery is horrified, and Reuven Kaminer dismissive…