Israeli Elections Come and Go, But Israel Remains an Outlaw State
A Palestinian family reacts after Israeli bulldozers demolished their home in the Arab East Jerusalem neighborhood of Beit Hanina, Feb. 5, 2013. (AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP/GETTY IMAGES)
Two Views: Israel’s Parliamentary Elections
Newly elected Israeli Knesset member Yair Lapid (l), leader of the Yesh Atid party, speaks to Naftali Bennett, head of the hard-line national religious party the Jewish Home, during a Feb. 5 reception in Jerusalem marking the opening of the 19th Knesset. (URIEL SINAI/GETTY IMAGES)
Richard H. Curtiss (1927-2013) Devoted His Life to Telling People Stories
Richard Curtiss at work in his Washington Report office. (STAFF PHOTO D. HANLEY)
Israeli License to Cheney-Linked Energy Firm on Golan Heights Raises Eyebrows
Then-Vice President Dick Cheney (l) and Likud chairman Benyamin Netanyahu, out of office at the time and serving as the official Israeli opposition leader, at a March 23, 2008 breakfast meeting at the King David Hotel in Jerusalem. (PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/GETTY IMAGES)
Peace at Last in the Southern Philippines?
Philippine President Benigno Aquino III (r) shares candies with Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) chief Murad Ebrahim during a Feb. 11 visit to the rebels’ stronghold in Sultan Kudarat on the island of Mindanao. (KARLOS MANLUPIG/AFP/GETTY IMAGES)
Two Palestinian, Israeli Documentaries Depict Evils of Military Occupation
Emad Burnat views his five broken cameras in his documentary of the same name. (PHOTO COURTESY KINO LORBER)
Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, November 2008, pages 57-58
Waging Peace
Vigilers Respond to Questions About Palestine
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THE HEAT OF the dog days of summer did not discourage eight stalwart peace activists who continued their vigil at the corner of Locust and Third Streets in Des Moines on Aug. 14. Officially, their protest is against the war in Iraq, but the activists are also well-informed about other Middle East conflicts and issues, including the Israeli occupation of Palestine.
“I’ve got several friends who work with the Christian Peacemaker Teams who have gone over to the West Bank,” said Halsey Reynolds, after noting that his activism was originally spurred by revelations of the torture of detainees at Guantanamo.
“I’ve kept an eye on what’s going on over there, and I would like to see military support for Israel stopped,” said Reynolds, a member of the Catholic Worker Movement in Kansas City, MO.
Dixie Webb of Ankeny is one of five Iowa activists a jury found not guilty in July 2007 of trespassing in the Des Moines offices of Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA). “I totally use olive oil from Palestine,” said Webb, adding that she supports the Palestinians in their quest for self-determination.
“We don’t think any of these issues will be solved by war,” said Eloise Cranke of Des Moines. “It only makes the situation worse.
“We think the Palestinian people have been very badly treated in all of this and are suffering greatly from the lack of justice in that area,” added Cranke, who was honored with the Catholic Peace Ministry’s 12th annual Bishop Dingman Award in 2007.
“I’m out here to promote peace,” said Rochelle Oakley of Urbandale, who was wearing an Obama 2008 shirt. Asked about Obama’s approach to Middle East foreign policy, Oakley said, “I think he’s right. We need to be more diplomatic. We need to talk.”
—Michael Gillespie
