Daily Star by Dalila Mahdawi, Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Photo: Stefan Christoff Wires over the street in Ein El Hilweh

BEIRUT: Most Palestinian refugees in southern Lebanon believe greater interaction with their Lebanese neighbors would help dismantle the prejudices and misconceptions that abound between the two communities, a recent report said.

The report, entitled “Community Perspectives on Protection: A Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices Analysis of Palestinian Communities in Southern Lebanon,” also found Palestinians endured high levels of familial and community violence because residents of formal camps and informal gatherings lack the necessary space and institutions where they can otherwise release their frustration.

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criminalization of social movements & the anti-terrorism crusade

Thursday, November 5th 2009
6:30 pm Pavillon J-A-DeSève (DS)
UQAM, Rm DS-1580
320 Sainte-Catherine Street E.
graphic obey

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Link by Jillian Kestler-D’amours, October 13, 2009.

Photo: Stefan Christoff. Wires in sky, Ein el-Hilweh, Palestinian camp, Lebanon.

Pictures of Fouad Sakr’s family line the walls of his modest Park Extension apartment in Montreal north.

“My son’s wedding in Lebanon,” said Sakr, pointing to a framed photograph displaying the smiling faces of his son, his son’s bride, his wife and himself.

On the other side of the room, school photos of Sakr’s granddaughters hang beneath two recognizable images: a small Palestinian flag and the Lebanese cedar tree, the country’s national symbol.

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Daily Star Tuesday, October 13, 2009.

Photo: Mary-Ellen Davis. Nahr el-Bared refugee camp destroyed pictured in late 2007.

BEIRUT: Demonstrators gathered in their thousands at Downtown Beirut’s Martyrs Square Monday to protest against government failure to begin reconstruction to Nahr al-Bared refugee camp. Organizers claim some 2,000 protestors from all over Lebanon attended the peaceful demonstration, watched over by soldiers and a dozen police in riot gear.

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George Bisharat, San Francisco Chronicle October 1st, 2009.

Photo: US President Barack Obama.

US President Barack Obama has placed restoration of the stature of the United States among his primary foreign policy goals. He has already achieved substantial progress in Europe, where polls indicate that he is widely admired. The president’s June Cairo University speech also won praise in the Arab and Muslim worlds. Yet many across the globe still await the substantive policy changes implied by his inspiring words.

President Obama can solidify broader global respect by supporting the recommendations of the just-released Goldstone report in the United Nations Human Rights Council. Richard Goldstone, an eminent South African jurist, led a mission to investigate allegations of war crimes in Gaza last winter.

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concert occurring within the Quebec Social Forum

SATURDAY OCTOBER 10th 20h00
suggested donation 5-10$
Cégep du Vieux Montréal
255 rue Ontario east
room 4.82 A
métro Berri-UQAM

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Activists and Combatants | Palestinian Perspectives 5th édition

October 21 to 30 2009
Cinémathèque québécoise
www.cinematheque.qc.ca
335, boul. de Maisonneuve est
Métro Berri-UQAM
7$ | 6$ for students and elders
4$ for children 6-15 years

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Interview with Rawi Hage, by Rima Hammoudi.

Photo: Tanya Traboulsi Sky over sea, Beirut, Lebanon.

As we made ourselves comfortable on a terrace at a nearby café, Rawi Hage began scanning the neighboring tables for an ashtray. “Do you mind if I smoke?” I didn’t, and reached over behind me and snagged the seemingly last ashtray that had yet to be claimed. Not lighting up right away, Hage began maneuvering a small, tightly packed cigar between his fingers as he began telling me about his travel plans for the summer: Europe, Australia and all of Canada. There is so much to see, we agreed, and any city, town or far off countryside is as good as any to start with.

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Daily Star by Matthew Mosley, Wednesday, September 09, 2009

Photo: Tanya Traboulsi Antennas in the sky in Beirut, Lebanon.

BEIRUT: “We’re a growing family,” says Zeid Hamdan, describing the Lebanese underground music scene. “Audiences have been following us since the beginning and they see constant progress. They see that we’re serious about the music. Now a whole new generation of teenagers is becoming interested in what we do.”

If Hamdan gets his way, underground music will soon break into the light of mainstream media attention. One half of the defunct band Soap Kills and one third of cult rockers The New Government, Hamdan has fought to promote the alternative scene on various fronts. Now, with “The Road to Kfifane,” he is presiding over a music festival dedicated solely to Lebanese talent.

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Report from United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), September 2009.

Photo: Palestinian youth walking down Israeli military Erez checkpoint in Gaza Strip.

The underground water supplies, upon which 1.5 million Palestinians depend for agricultural and drinking water, are in danger of collapse as a result of years of over-use and contamination that have been exacerbated by the recent conflict.

A report released today by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) on the environmental condition of the Gaza Strip following the hostilities, calls for the aquifer to be “rested” and alternative water sources found.

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