Israel-Palestine: Pax Americana in trouble In both the Palestinian Territories and in Iraq the imperialists are trying to get their stooges elected. In both there is growing opposition and the plans of the imperialists are proving to be more difficult to put in place. They may get the men they want elected, but they can’t convince the masses that life is getting any better. By Yossi Schwartz (December 24, 2004)
Palestinian elections under Israeli bayonets Thursday, January 6, 2005 On January 9, Palestinians living in the occupied territories will elect the president of the Palestinian Authority. At the end of January the Iraqis living under the Anglo-American imperialist occupation will elect a new puppet government. In the present conditions that actually exist in both countries the idea that these elections will somehow be “free and fair” is somewhat of a joke, and a rather bad one at that.
Israel: The GSS inflict physical punishment on Ms Fahima during interrogation Ms. Tali Fahima, a peace activist from Kiryat-Gat suspected of contacting the leader of the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade in Jenin, Zakariya Zbeide, was arrested on August 8, 2004, and turned over to the GSS. The interrogation methods used against her include: sleep deprivation, food deprivation, painful handcuffing to a chair for long periods and sexual harassment.
Sharon brings Labour into the government: An attempt to shore up the glaring crisis in the system The Sharon government is held together by a shaky coalition of parties. In the past period some have left, bringing his government close to collapse. Now Labour has come to the rescue. With it it brings the leadership of the Histadrut, the trade union federation. It is an attempt to hold back the inevitable explosion of class struggle which will come in the next period.
Israel: GSS inflict physical punishment on Ms Fahima during interrogation No evidence has been produced by the police authorities in Israel to justify the continued incarceration of Tali Fahima. In spite of this she is still brutally treated.
Urgent: Tali Fahima in GSS interrogation again - Court Hearing in Tel-Aviv cancelled We have just received this latest update on the situation Tali Fahima is facing in an Israeli jail. It confirms what we said back in September. It shows how the Israeli state deals with anyone – even if they are Jewish – who dares to take up the plight of the Palestinians in the refugee camps in a serious manner.
November 29, 1947: A day that marked the victory of the counter-revolution in Palestine Yesterday marked a grim anniversary for the Palestinian people. On November 29, 1947, the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted a Partition Plan calling for the creation of two States, one Jewish and the other Arab. Since then there has not been peace between the two people. Yossi Schwartz in Jerusalem comments.
After Arafat's death: Will the Palestinian Authority take the carrot? Following the announcement regarding the selection of the new leader of the Palestinian Authority, Abu Mazen, the government of Israel signalled a possible shift in policy toward the Authority. The new PA leadership seems keen to collaborate with Sharon. The only thing this proves is that those who in the past promised to liberate Palestine through the tactics of guerrilla war, which turned into terrorism, are ready to sell out.
On the Death of Yasser Arafat After a week in hospital, lying in a coma and suffering from a brain haemorrhage, President of the Palestinian National Authority Yasser Arafat has finally died. Yossi Schwartz, writing from Jerusalem, comments on his career.
Arafat's departure will open up power struggle Arafat is seriously ill. His days are clearly numbered now. Yossi Schwartz in Jerusalem explains how this will affect the balance of forces within the Fatah movement and how this will open up more room for Hamas. It also marks the beginning of a new period in which Hamas will be called on to stabilise the situation, thus exposing itself before the Palestinian masses.
Sharon has failed in Gaza - The time is ripe to fight for the perspective of a workers' government The Sharon government’s days are clearly numbered. His brutal two week campaign in Gaza has achieved the opposite of what he was expecting. The question is who and what can replace him? The alternative must clearly come from within the labour movement.
Death in the Sinai, Gaza and Iraq – power cuts in the Lebanon - All part of the same crisis Anyone who examines the situation of the Middle East, not in each country separately but as a whole, must come to the conclusion that the days of social and economic stability are definitely over. Instead of economic stability we have crisis. Instead of peace we are caught in the crossfire between the imperialists’ state terror and the individual terror of the Islamic fundamentalists.
Gaza and Beyond This is the seventh day of “Operation Days of Penitence” that has killed at least 70 Palestinians, many of them women and children. This is the largest operation in the Gaza Strip in the four years since the beginning of this Intifada.
Major strike wave hits Israel A general strike in the public sector in Israel has been called in protest against the non-payment of wages and the proposed 2005 budget cuts. The strike is affecting all government ministries, municipal authorities, state-owned companies and transportation, including the national airline El Al. Refuse collection workers, traffic wardens, dockworkers, railway, telecom, electricity and hospital workers are also involved. Once again, it reflects the serious class divide that is opening up in Israeli society.
Sharon the new Israeli Bonaparte – but for how long? In spite of only having minority support in the Knesset, Sharon holds on to power. This is because both the left and the right continue to support him, for they cannot offer an alternative. That alternative can only come from the working class.
