In a decade or so, the voices of the original Nakba survivors will be extinct. But 86 year old Mariam Fatallah remembers clearly being expelled from her village in 1948. She wants to be sure that others know what happened to her and hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees. She is making a tour of the USA and Canada to share her memories of expulsion and of living as a refugee in Lebanon. Read more
Globe and Mail Middle East Bureau Chief Patrick Martin told an Ottawa meeting that he was neither in favour of nor opposed to BDS, the international movement to boycott Israel. But in his presentation, he explained why he thinks Israel sees BDS as a “strategic threat”. He also explained, somewhat ominously, what Israel might thinking of doing about it. Read more. (more…)
At a big event organized last January by the Jewish community in Toronto, Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne announced she would lead a delegation to Israel. She said she wanted to promote “political, economic and cultural ties” . If she wants to get a balanced view of Israeli history, politics and culture, I have several suggestions for her team to consider. including in her itinerary. She leaves on May 15th, so there might be time to adjust her agenda. Read more.
McGill University is one of many Canadian university campuses where debate took place last month over the Israel/Palestine conflict. Organizations defending Palestinian human rights are more active than ever across the country. So, also are various pro-Israeli organizations. The debate is intense. Read more.
UWO law professor Michael Lynk was named by the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) as a “Special Rapporteur on Palestine”. Within 24 hours, the Israel lobby was in full attack mode, claiming Lynk had a long record of hostility toward Israel and demanding the Government of Canada oppose the nomination. Shortly thereafter, Global Affairs Minister Stephane Dion tweeted that he would ask the UN to review his appointment. But has Dion really checked out Lynk’s background? Read more
Canada Talks Israel/Palestine 