David, it is clear that you have opposed all settlements on occupied Palestinian lands since 1968. If there were more people like you in Israel, perhaps a critical mass would compel consecutive Israeli governments to stop its settlement building, which continues until this very writing. Obviously, having a dialogue about what is happening there is not the same as affecting policy changes on the ground. But our positions on this issue are clear. Since 1967, the Israeli government has been slowly, illegally annexing Palestinian lands through its settlement and security policies--making it almost impossible for a Palestinian state to emerge.

This is a short video, which I believe shows how difficult it is for a two-state solution to succeed. 

Hi Souheila,

I read carefully your friend's advice and I am not surprised. As a guy who lived for 55 years in polarizied Jerusalem this is an understandable and regular reaction. We Palestinian and Israelis have for too long been in a deadly embrace. As for myself I have demonstrated against occupation and specifically against the settlements since 1968! So after 40 years of active opposition in Jeruslaem I moved to SF to have a break. For me, the Palestinian issue is very central to any dialog, and for me the eye to eye level is key to any real understanding.

In Jeruslaem I worked a  lot with Palestinian journalists and started the web site www.amin.org. I also started a dialog of the deaf project that was supposed to connect Palestinian and Israeli deaf children through the internet. Hopefully your friend knows that 99% of the people in the Middle East can hear, but only 5% are listening...

Hi David, as you know we have been sending out information about our blog to various people and networks. I got a  very critical e-mail from a Palestinian man, who lives in Jordan and asked not to be identified. It is a very harsh, but we knew from the start that this dialogue would not be easy. I wondered how you would respond to his e-mail below:

Hi Souheila , Sounds interesting. When you say he has roots the Middle

East are you saying he is Israeli? Even if not the case, please make

sure you are not dealing with a Jewish supremacist by asking him a

direct question as to whether he openly endorses, unconditionally,

elemental human rights for Jews and non-Jews alike  especially the 4th

Geneva convention. If he does not or if he gives a wishy washy answer,

you are doing Muslims, Arabs, and Palestinains in particular a great

disservice by giving a platform to a Jewish supremacist under the

guise of dialog. It's not possible to separate Arab/Mulsim/jewish/israeli

dialog apart.. To do so is to attempt to legitimize Jewish racial and religious

supremacy for the sake of a cordial TV conversation.  The treatment of

Arabs/Muslims in the Holy Land is the white elephant that cannot be ignored.

One cannot be a liberal in the US and a KKK in Israel. I know some will say Palestine

is not everything.

To Blacks, Apartheid South Africa was everything and no

Black, American or others attempted to skip a discussion of apartheid

for the sake of  bogus black-white relations. If you attempt to

sidetrack Jewish supremacy in the Holy Land  you are only falling into

the same trap of those who attempted dialog before you. Only open and

unconditional endorsement of the 4th geneva convention is the

ultimate litmus test before opening a dialog with any Jew. It's

elemental human rights, not philosophy. 

http://www.cicr.org/ihl.nsf/WebART/380-600056?OpenDocument

Sorry is the email comes across too preachy. Best of luck.

The war of information that goes on about Gaza includes a lot of propaganda and denial of wrong doing. It was a classic case of disinformation when the Israeli Army launched a 3 day investigation to find out if Israeli soldiers performed war crimes in Gaza. Of course, it found out and published a statement that Israel's Army is the most MORAL army in the world.

The Hamas also engaged in its investigation about Palestinian pro-Fatah prisoners and how they were treated.  This investigation is a spin on facts that everyone knows. Mistreating pro-Fatah supporters in Gaza has been established before.

So the competition of spin and denial is an ongoing feature of all people in power and movements that claim moral superiority. Disinformation and the work by the Ministry of Truth on all sides is a given. The power of spin and PR

are always evident. But you cannot fool all the poeple all of the time.

What Rep. Ellison has done should be commended. Getting information from different sources is exactly what Link TV is all about. Particularly on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. The American public needs to see the world from different perspectives. There are a plethora of news outlets that provide alternative information. Take Al Jazeera English. Watch this Al Jazeera report about Gaza after the recent war. This is an eye opening account of the suffering that continues after the war. You won't find this kind of reporting in the U.S.

I think that the Muslim community inside the Beltway is still wet behind the ears. It will take time, greater organization and political clout before it can have a stronger presence inside the beltway.