POMED Report: Analyzing the FY13 State and Foreign Operations Appropriations Bills
The Project on Middle East Democracy (POMED) released a report contrasting the House and Senate Appropriations bills for fiscal year 2013, examining the potential impact of these bills on foreign aid and democracy assistance. Among the notable findings are additional ...
June 12, 2012
Category: Bahrain, Civil Society, Congress, Democracy Promotion, Egypt, Featured, Foreign Aid, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Legislation, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, POMED, Reports, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, UN Human Rights Council, US foreign policy, Western Sahara, Yemen
Palestinian Soccer Player Still on Hunger Strike
Mahmoud Sarsak has now been on hunger strike for eighty days, protesting his imprisonment for his alleged involvement with Islamic Jihad, a claim he and his family have denied. Israel has kept Sarsak in prison indefinitely without any ...
Dept of State: Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2011
The U.S. Department of State released its annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2011. Particular emphasis was placed on the Middle East and North Africa, where developments in the Arab Spring led to significant changes in ...
Palestinian Unity Government Formed
On Sunday, Fatah and Hamas reached an agreement to form a “national unity government.” Faisal Abu Shahla, a member of Fatah, said, “We hope this time the two sides are serious in implementing the agreement. The Egyptians have promised to follow up with both sides to make sure that the agreement is implemented." The move towards reconciliation followed a Cabinet reshuffle by Prime Minister Salam Fayyad. Elliot Abrams weighed in on the unity deal, saying, "This ...
POMED Notes: “Obama and the Middle East: The End of America’s Moment”
On Monday, the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars hosted a discussion titled “Obama and the Middle East: The End of America's Moment”. The event featured Fawaz Gerges, professor, Middle Eastern Politics and International Relations, at the London School of Economics and Political Sciences, who introduced his book ‘Obama and the Middle East: The End Of America's Moment?’ In his book, Gerges dissects how President Obama’s Middle East strategy has ...
Summary and Highlights of the FY13 House State and Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill
On Thursday (5/17), the House Appropriations Committee approved the fiscal year 2013 State and Foreign Operations Appropriations bill. According to a committee press release, the bill totals $40.1 billion in regular discretionary funding, which is $2 billion or 5 ...
May 21, 2012
Category: Bahrain, Civil Society, Congress, Democracy Promotion, Egypt, Featured, Foreign Aid, Human Rights, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Legislation, Libya, Morocco, NGOs, Oman, Palestine, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, UN Human Rights Council, US foreign policy, Women, Yemen
POMED Notes: “The Civil Insurgents: The Arab Uprisings and Civil Society”
On Tuesday, the new America Foundation hosted a conference titled “The Civil Insurgents: The Arab Uprisings and Civil Society.” The discussion was focused on the role of civil society in the Arab Spring and in the future of the Arab states. The conference was moderated by Leila Hilal, co-director of the New America Foundation Middle East Task Force. The panelists were Abulnabi Hasan Alkery, President of the Bahrain Transparency Society, ...
May 15, 2012
Category: Civil Society, Democracy Promotion, Egypt, Elections, EU, Event Notes, Foreign Aid, Gulf, Human Rights, Islam and Democracy, Israel, NGOs, Palestine, POMED, US foreign policy
Thousands Gather to Commemorate Palestinian Nakba
Today, thousands gathered in parts of the occupied West Bank, Gaza, and parts of Israel to commemorate al-Nakba, or the catastrophe, the day where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were expelled or fled their homes during Israel's war for independence. Protests were concentrated in ...
POMED Notes: “Assessing U.S. Foreign Policy Priorities and Needs Amidst Economic Challenges in the Middle East”
On Wednesday, the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia held a hearing entitled, "Assessing U.S. Foreign Policy Priories and Needs Amidst Economic Challenges in he Middle East." The committee heard testimony from Jeffrey Feltman, Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, and Mara Rudman, Assistant Administrator for the Bureau for the Middle East at USAID. Mark Ward, Deputy Special Coordinator for Middle East Transitions ...
May 10, 2012
Category: Committee Meetings, Congress, Congressional Hearing Notes (House), Countries, Egypt, Foreign Aid, Iran, Israel, Lebanon, NGOs, Palestine, Political transition, Syria, US foreign policy
International Crisis Group: “The Emperor Has No Clothes”
Yesterday, The International Crisis Group released a new report, “The Emperor Has No Clothes: Palestinians and the End of the Peace Process.” The report goes in depth into the current stalemate that has paralyzed the peace process, including the apathy of the international community, Israel, and the current Palestinian leadership. However, according to the report the current “hiatus is badly needed” in order to reinvigorate the peace process and reconsider ...
Israeli Prison Doctor Fears for Lives of Palestinian Hunger Strikers
Earlier this month, the Israeli Prison Service reported that an estimated 2,000 Palestinian prisoners began a hunger strike on April 17. As of yesterday, more than 15 prisoners have been transferred to Israeli hospitals due to sever deterioration ...
Former Head of Israeli Intelligence Service Slams Israel’s Leadership
Recently retired Yuval Diskin, former head of Israeli intelligence service Shin Bet, called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak's leadership "messianic" and accused them of promoting a war on Iran. According to Diskin, attacking Iran ...
Reporters Without Borders: “Palestinian Journalists at the Mercy of Arbitrary Israeli Justice”
Last Week, Reporters Without Borders (RWB) published an article denouncing the recent sentencing of Palestinian journalist Suhaib Al-Assa to four month’s imprisonment and a fine of 3,000 Shekels (about 600 Euros). According to the Ma’an News Agency, the journalist’s home was raided by Israeli troops where he had his personal computer and cell phone seized before being taken directly to Ashkelon prison. RWB reported that the Israeli justice refuses to ...
Palestinian Leader Calls for Nonviolent Resistance
Thomas Friedman writes in the New York Times that Palestinian Leader Marwan Barghouti called for the Palestinian people to undertake a nonviolent, popular uprising against Israel. However, Friedman warns that nonviolent resistance must be coupled with a "detailed map of the final two-state settlement.” By doing so, ...
POMED Notes: Palestine: Economic Challenges and Political Implications
On Tuesday, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace hosted a discussion titled hearing Palestine: Economic Challenges and Political Implications. The Palestinian economy made significant advances in recent years under Prime Minister Salam Fayyad’s institution building program, yet questions remain regarding the sustainability of such progress in light of the ongoing, and seemingly long-lasting, diplomatic stalemate with Israel. The discussion featured Robert Danin, Eni Enrico Mattei Fello, Council on Foreign Relations; ...
International Crisis Group: Postponing Reform in a Divided Jordan
The Kingdom of Jordan, although not completely neglected by the Arab Spring, has been able to maintain relative stability amid regional turmoil. A report recently released by International Crisis Group, explains the root of the unrest and the major issues, both recent and historical, that divide the country today. The report begins with protests beginning of in 2010, that brought together “a wide popular spectrum” of Jordanian Society: “East Bankers, Palestinian ...
State Department Calls for End to Violence in Gaza
Al-Jazeera reported that Israeli air strikes in the Gaza strip have killed a total number of 23 Palestinians since violence erupted in the Palestinian territory on Friday. Islamic Jihad, a Palestinian militant group blamed for rocket fire into Israel, claimed that two of the dead were members. Israel justifies the attacks saying that it is “hitting back at scores of rocket attacks.” The violence erupted when the Israeli army carried out ...
March 12, 2012
Category: Human Rights, Israel, Palestine, UN Human Rights Council, UN Security Council, United Nations, US foreign policy
Israeli Troops Raid Palestinian Television Stations
On Wednesday, Israeli soldiers raided two Palestinian news stations in the occupied West Bank seizing transmitters the military said were “interfering with air traffic communications.” Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad visited Watan TV, one of the raided TV stations, called the Israeli offensive “oppressive and monstrous” and “violated all international laws.” Spokesman for the Palestinian Authority Ghassan Khatib stated that the Palestinian communications ministry determined that they had complied with ...