Category Archives: Israel-Palestine Scene

VIDEO | “Who Is My Neighbor?” — How Compassion Plays Out in the Land of the Bible

Crises like the coronavirus pandemic tend to lay bare the fault-lines within human societies — sometimes fractures normally hidden just beneath the surface but just as often gaping chasms that should have been unmistakable to anyone paying attention. It’s certainly … Continue reading

Posted in Gaza, Israel-Palestine Scene, Occupied Territories, Palestinians, VIDEOS, West Bank | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

UP-“DATED” | Finding “Methuselah” a Wife

Scientists await flowering of two 2,000-year-old female date palms. Object: Matrimony This story first arose several years ago, in 2005, with the sprouting of a 2,000-year-old date seed recovered archaeologically from Masada, the ancient fortress site near the Dead Sea. … Continue reading

Posted in For FUN (mostly), Israel-Palestine Scene, Plants & Animals, Roman Period | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Guide ends years-long hiatus to show you the sights…

…of Gaza And, no — it’s not me. And, you can’t go there on your own, because the Israeli authorities (aided, alas, by Egypt) completely forbid the entry of tourists, one of the lesser-known facets of their perverse siege of … Continue reading

Posted in Gaza, Israel-Palestine Scene, Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, Occupied Territories, Palestinians, PHOTOS | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Awaiting You in Bethlehem: Banksy’s Quirky “Walled-Off Hotel”

I have a certain affinity for the absurd. Not absurdity for its own sake, mind you, but the kind that instructs and illuminates, that comments upon our world and helps us grapple with the harsh realities it confronts us with. … Continue reading

Posted in Bethlehem area, Christmas, For FUN (mostly), Israel-Palestine Scene, Occupied Territories, Palestinian Christians, Palestinians, Separation Barrier, The Occupation | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Uri Avnery, Longtime Israeli Peace Activist, Dies at 94

It was a Friday evening ritual for me, for years: pulling up the Gush Shalom web-site to partake of Uri Avnery’s weekly offering, each one providing some unique window into Israeli life, society, culture, politics or history– and especially issues of … Continue reading

Posted in Israel-Palestine Scene, Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, Journalism, Modern History, Palestinians, Politics, The Occupation | Tagged | Leave a comment

Temple Discourse Within Present-day Israeli Society: A Reflection on Tisha B’Av

  Here’s a thought provoking offering from Yudith Oppenheimer, Executive Director of the Jerusalem-based Ir-Amim organization, on the occasion of Tisha B’Av, when Jews worldwide remember the loss of their historic temples. She writes in part: Post-Temple Judaism managed, for the … Continue reading

Posted in Haram/ Temple Mount, Holidays, Israel-Palestine Scene, Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, JERUSALEM, Temple | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Who Stole the Samaritan Torahs?

From the NPR web-site comes an intriguing article by Jerusalem-based international correspondent Daniel Estrin offering a rare glimpse inside the modern Samaritan community in the Holy Land. This tiny sect, tightly-knit and steeped in colorful ancient traditions, consider themselves the … Continue reading

Posted in Antiquities, Israel-Palestine Scene, Nablus area, Old Testament, Religion, West Bank | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment