Several events in the past few weeks should make people pay attention to the frightening reality of freedom of speech regarding Palestine and Israel. We are on precarious ground.
Public opinion has shifted in a more pro-Palestinian direction, especially among younger Americans and people of colour. Up until now, this shift registered mainly in polling data. But with the past six weeks of Israel’s brutal assault on Gaza, there has been an outpouring of support for Palestinian rights and opposition to Israel’s unrelenting war.
It was expected that pro-Palestinian support would be countered by groups supportive of Israel. But the virulence of the pro-Israeli counter-attacks has been worrisome. A major American Jewish organisation purporting to defend civil rights had called on universities in the US to ban the student society Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP). They have called the student group anti-Semitic and in an extraordinary move, called on the US government to investigate whether the students could be charged with “providing material support for terrorism”.
While sometimes incautious, and in rare instances thoughtless, language may have been used by young students to express support for Palestinians and anger at their indiscriminate killing, there is nothing to substantiate the dangerous charge of terrorism. Some US universities have responded by banning the SJP, together with Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), a national organisation of young progressive American Jews supportive of Palestinian rights. Despite its Jewish membership, JVP has also been termed anti-Semitic by the same pro-Israel advocates.
A week ago, the chair of a Midwestern state’s Democratic Party issued a press release denouncing a group of officers of the Young Democrats on one of the state’s college campuses. The student Democrats’ letter ended with a nuanced version of what pro-Israel groups have come to insist is a controversial statement. So instead of saying “From the river to the sea, Palestine shall be free,” they wrote, “May every Palestinian be free, from the river to the sea.”
Despite the students' best efforts, the state party chair’s release accused them of using anti-Semitic language, making Jewish students feel unsafe on campus and supporting genocide against the Jewish people. The state chair also called on them to resign from their posts as elected officers in the Democratic group.
In justifying this harsh response, the chair cited the definition of the original phrase provided by a pro-Israel group:
“This phrase is anti-Semitic and can make members of our Jewish community feel unsafe because it calls for genocide. ‘From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free’ is an anti-Semitic slogan commonly featured in anti-Israel campaigns and chanted at demonstrations… Usage of this phrase has the effect of making members of the Jewish and pro-Israel community feel unsafe and ostracised. It is important to note that demanding justice for Palestinians, or calling for a Palestinian state, should not mean, as this hateful phrase posits, denying the right of the State of Israel to exist.”
Just a week ago, a respected community-based organisation in the state of Maryland, called Casa (Court Appointed Special Advocate), that provides support services for immigrants, also issued a statement in support of the Palestinian people. It denounced the massacres perpetrated by Hamas on October 7 and the Israeli bombing campaign that has taken the lives of thousands of Palestinians. The Casa statement went on to say that as people of colour, they identified with the struggle for justice and freedom because “the Palestinian struggle mirrors our own.”
Casa’s solidarity was met by a letter from a group of Maryland legislators and elected officials demanding they rescind their statement, declaring it “anti-Semitic”. And as state legislators who decide the state’s budget, they more pointedly stated without any concern: “This might be an appropriate time to re-evaluate the state’s mechanism for providing financial aid and support to our immigrant community.”
Subtle, this was not. Since thousands of immigrants depend on Casa for critical services and advocacy, they felt compelled to apologise and take down the statement. As of yet, it seems the legislators have not relented in their threat to end the group’s funding.
Finally, an op-ed in the New York Daily News last week that called for the re-establishment of the Jewish Defence League, a religious-political organisation on the far-right in the US, should cause concern and outrage. Instead, it passed without comment from elected officials concerned about the spread of hate. In his column, David Blumenfeld, a prominent New York philanthropist, praised the JDL’s founder, Meir Kahane, and extolled the virtues of the group that he claimed represented strong Jews and a firm response to threats against their safety.
He ignored the facts that for decades the JDL was on the FBI terrorism list; it was one of the major perpetrators of terrorist violence during the 1970s and 1980s; and was even banned in Israel as a racist terror group that spawned the likes of the person who perpetrated the massacre of Muslim worshippers in Hebron’s Ibrahim Mosque and the assassin of former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. That a major US paper would even publish such a piece without comment is an indicator of how dangerous the situation has become.
From these examples, it would seem the wrong discourse is being scrutinised.
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How tumultuous protests grew
- A fuel tax protest by French drivers appealed to wider anti-government sentiment
- Unlike previous French demonstrations there was no trade union or organised movement involved
- Demonstrators responded to online petitions and flooded squares to block traffic
- At its height there were almost 300,000 on the streets in support
- Named after the high visibility jackets that drivers must keep in cars
- Clashes soon turned violent as thousands fought with police at cordons
- An estimated two dozen people lost eyes and many others were admitted to hospital
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The five pillars of Islam
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Quick pearls of wisdom
Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”
Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.”
THE BIO:
Favourite holiday destination: Thailand. I go every year and I’m obsessed with the fitness camps there.
Favourite book: Born to Run by Christopher McDougall. It’s an amazing story about barefoot running.
Favourite film: A League of their Own. I used to love watching it in my granny’s house when I was seven.
Personal motto: Believe it and you can achieve it.
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More on Quran memorisation:
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Sector: Software
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HAEMOGLOBIN DISORDERS EXPLAINED
Thalassaemia is part of a family of genetic conditions affecting the blood known as haemoglobin disorders.
Haemoglobin is a substance in the red blood cells that carries oxygen and a lack of it triggers anemia, leaving patients very weak, short of breath and pale.
The most severe type of the condition is typically inherited when both parents are carriers. Those patients often require regular blood transfusions - about 450 of the UAE's 2,000 thalassaemia patients - though frequent transfusions can lead to too much iron in the body and heart and liver problems.
The condition mainly affects people of Mediterranean, South Asian, South-East Asian and Middle Eastern origin. Saudi Arabia recorded 45,892 cases of carriers between 2004 and 2014.
A World Health Organisation study estimated that globally there are at least 950,000 'new carrier couples' every year and annually there are 1.33 million at-risk pregnancies.
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The 12 Syrian entities delisted by UK
Ministry of Interior
Ministry of Defence
General Intelligence Directorate
Air Force Intelligence Agency
Political Security Directorate
Syrian National Security Bureau
Military Intelligence Directorate
Army Supply Bureau
General Organisation of Radio and TV
Al Watan newspaper
Cham Press TV
Sama TV
Getting there
Flydubai flies direct from Dubai to Tbilisi from Dh1,025 return including taxes
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
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How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
If you go:
Getting there:
Flying to Guyana requires first reaching New York with either Emirates or Etihad, then connecting with JetBlue or Caribbean Air at JFK airport. Prices start from around Dh7,000.
Getting around:
Wildlife Worldwide offers a range of Guyana itineraries, such as its small group tour, the 15-day ‘Ultimate Guyana Nature Experience’ which features Georgetown, the Iwokrama Rainforest (one of the world’s four remaining pristine tropical rainforests left in the world), the Amerindian village of Surama and the Rupununi Savannah, known for its giant anteaters and river otters; wildlifeworldwide.com
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
