Tangents Radio

Gaza Corner Archive

Gaza Corner features news and opinion from the Middle East (and beyond) often ignored by the mainstream media.

Gaza Corner airs during the 11p hour on Tangents, Saturday nights on KALW (91.7 FM, kalw.org), SF.

Gaza Corner theme music: Palestinian oudist Adnan Joubran

December 7, 2024

As Gaza Corner went live on December 7, the 54 year dynastic reign of the Assad family was being toppled. During this historic night, Gaza Corner focused on why Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and the 30+ Turkey backed jihadist groups were able to do in 10 days what they could not in a decade. Many questions remain such as has Abu Mohammed al-Jolani truly transformed HTS into a more pragmatic and tolerant Islamic group? Predicting the future is dicey but a couple of things appear clear. The biggest outside winners are Turkey and Israel. The Kurds may be the biggest losers as Turkey is hell bent on displacing Kurds from as much territory as possible in Syria's northeast and perhaps beyond. Turkey's Erdogan knows Trump is likely to give him a free hand in Syria as Trump did during his first term. Meanwhile, Israel will likely seize the opportunity to do a land grab to create a "buffer zone" along its border in Syria.

This analysis proved correct as within 48 hours of Assad's fall, Israel not only seized Syrian territory but unleashed a bombing campaign described by an Israeli security source as “one of the largest attack operations in the history of its air force.”

Subsequent to Gaza Corner broadcast:

Israel Expands Invasion of Syria, Launching Massive Airstrikes After Assad's Fall
Israel’s message is clear: regardless of who governs Syria, Israel will ensure it does not possess the basic military capacity to defend itself.

Syria’s Kurds faced with all-out war as Turkey, Sunni allies target Kobani
A day after the fall of the SDF-controlled town of Manbij, Turkish proxies advanced today toward the town of Kobani.

'Not our fight': President-elect Trump distances US from Syria's conflict
In a morning social media post, Republican Donald Trump indicated the US should have 'nothing to do' with Syria's war.

Syria's US-backed Kurdish forces seize Deir ez-Zor as Assad hangs by thread
The developments came as Hayat Tahrir al-Sham pressed its lightning offensive against Syrian government forces and is closing in on the country's third-largest city, Homs.

Syrians Ponder a Future After Aleppo
Residents of the northern city and government-held areas in Syria are wondering what comes next after the recent rebel takeover

The Backstory Behind the Fall of Aleppo
New Lines reports exclusively on the details leading up to the city's stunning capture

November 30, 2024

Lebanese Music Producer and co-founder of Beirut Jam Sessions, Anthony Semaan is guest for a full hour. Anthony delves into music projects with Lebanese trumpeter Ibrahim Maalouf, as well as vocalist Yasmine Hamdan. During the second half, Anthony describes how Lebanon's sectarian power-sharing structure created on independence from France resulted in a weak, corrupt, patronage-based system that pits sect against sect. He also offers his perspective on the recently announced 'ceasefire" between Israel and Lebanon.


The 'Ceasefire' in Lebanon is a Ticking Bomb
President Biden says the deal is intended to be permanent, but the U.S. gave Israel wide latitude to resume its attacks

Israel Fired on Journalists in Lebanon Just Hours After Ceasefire Began
Israel's attack on the journalists marks the first violation of the ceasefire, a press group said.

Explaining Lebanon's political system, the influence of religion, armed groups such as Hezbollah, and corruption in the state.

The Man Who Embodies All That Is Wrong With Lebanon
Lebanon's central banker Raid Salameh was only a cog - albeit an important one - in a corrupt and dysfunctional system resistant to desperately needed reform. Now he has finally stepped down, but don't expect things to get better.

Broken Glass, Blood, and Anguish: Beirut After the Blast
Personal account of the August 4, 2020 port explosion in Lebanon.

Economic crisis, severe shortages make Lebanon 'unlivable'

Diapers and rags: Lebanon crisis plunges women into period poverty

November 9, 2024

Dr. Stephen Zunes is the special guest on Gaza Corner. He is Professor of Politics and International Studies at the University of San Francisco, where he served as founding director of the program in Middle Eastern Studies. Recognized as one the country’s leading scholars of U.S. Middle East policy, Professor Zunes has served as a senior policy analyst for Foreign Policy in Focus project of the Institute for Policy Studies, an associate editor of Peace Review, and a contributing editor of Tikkun until June 2024.

September 21, 2024

Andrea Assaf

Gaza Corner is divided into two parts. The first segment features Andrea Assaf, creator and director of Eleven Reflections San Francisco @ The Brava Theater, October 4 - 5. This unique production digs into the impact of post-9/11 policies and engages local Bay Area artists to tell their stories. It features Syrian opera singer Lubana Al Quntar + Turkish violinist Eylem Basaldi. Tickets

Part 2 of Gaza Corner dives into Israel's New Campaign of "Terrorism Warfare" Across Lebanon.


Lebanon: 37 Dead, 3,400+ Injured in Wave of Explosions in Electronic Devices Booby-Trapped by Israel

Israel's New Campaign of "Terrorism Warfare" Across Lebanon
What we know about Israel's bloody attacks targeting consumer electronic devices in Lebanon

How Israel Built a Modern-Day Trojan Horse: Exploding Pagers
The Israeli government did not tamper with the Hezbollah devices that exploded, defense and intelligence officials say. It manufactured them as part of an elaborate ruse.

Hezbollah chief calls pager, radio attacks an 'act of war' by Israel
Hezbollah leader Hasan Nasrallah addressed the nation Thursday in a televised speech, as Israeli warplanes flew over the Lebanese capital, Beirut.

Paging The Hague: Israel's Exploding Electronics Might Be War Crimes
Experts on international law pointed to the indiscriminate nature of the blasts in Lebanon and the prohibition on booby traps.

September 7, 2024

Gazan journalist Mohammed R. Mhawish called in for a special hour long Gaza Corner to describe Israel's ongoing targeted assassinations of journalists. Mohammad Mhawish detailed his own story of how the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) targeted him several times including bombing his home with his family inside. Mohammad was rescued from under the rubble and both he and his 2 year old son suffered serious injuries. Israel does not allow foreign journalists independent access into Gaza. The IDF does not want its ongoing atrocities reported to the world. Thus all Gazan journalists have a target on their back and why Gaza is the deadliest place for journalists on record.


In memory of journalist Ismail Al-Ghoul, Gaza City's voice to the world

How do we continue with business as usual after another friend, and another icon of Palestinian journalism, was brutally killed by Israel for doing his job?

Mohammed escaped to Cairo after his home was bombed and he and his family miraculously survived.


Al Jazeera refutes 'baseless' Israeli allegations against Ismail al-Ghoul
During its war on Gaza, Israel has claimed its bombings of journalists and civilian targets were strikes against Hamas.

DF releases file seized in Gaza to show Al Jazeera reporter was Hamas member

Al Jazeera journalists killed in Israeli airstrike in Gaza

'ELIMINATED': Israel Brags Of Killing Noted Al Jazeera Journalist In Gaza
A post from the Israeli military acknowledged that Ismail al-Ghoul was a journalist - and also accused him, without evidence, of being a terrorist.A post from the Israeli military acknowledged that Ismail al-Ghoul was a journalist - and also accused him, without evidence, of being a terrorist.A post from the Israeli military acknowledged that Ismail al-Ghoul was a journalist - and also accused him, without evidence, of being a terrorist.A post from the Israeli military acknowledged that Ismail al-Ghoul was a journalist - and also accused him, without evidence, of being a terrorist.

A Palestinian journalist visited Ismail Haniyeh's home in Gaza to report on his death. Israel assassinated him too.
Al Jazeera reporter Ismail al-Ghoul had become a household name for anyone following the war on Gaza. When he went to Ismail Haniyeh's hometown to cover a commemoration of his killing, Israel assassinated him too.

Journalist casualties in the Israel-Gaza war

"Pieces of People": Israeli Strike on Gaza School Kills 100+, Bodies Destroyed Beyond Recognition

Israel's Government Advances Bill Making Al Jazeera Ban Permanent
The temporary order is currently valid until July 31, or until the end of the declaration of a special situation on the home front. The bill now goes to the Knesset for the first of four votes.

August 24, 2024

Gaza Corner describes how the Harris campaign silenced Palestinian voices at the Democratic National Convention (DNC). It also discusses an uncomfortable truth: Israel is a geopolitical liability for the US. This relationship increases direct risks to American national security. But what about "common values" which has long been given as a reason to justify US support and defense of Israel? A majority of Americans do not share values with a country that is an apartheid state, and is decimating Gaza in a "plausible" genocide according to the International Criminal Court.


2024 Democratic Party Platform

Watch: Palestinian American Lawmaker Ruwa Romman Give Speech the DNC Wouldn't Allow on Stage

Here Is the Speech That the Uncommitted Movement Wants to Give at the DNC

Harris speech fails to win over critics in Democrats' biggest rift, Gaza

The DNC slams the door on Gaza advocates
The Democratic National Convention's refusal to grant speaking time to a Palestinian American marked a harsh reality check for many pro-Palestinian advocates about the Democratic Party's prioritization of their voices.

No Palestinian Americans Will Speak at Convention, DNC Decides
"Uncommitted" Democratic delegates are staging a sit-in in front of the United Center until they get a call reversing DNC decision.

DNC 2024: New Democratic Party platform shuns US arms embargo on Israel

Inside the Push to Get Palestinian Speakers on the DNC Main Stage
"Uncommitted" Democratic delegates are trying to convince the DNC to allow Palestinian Americans onto the convention's main stage.

August 17, 2024

Gaza Corner debunks two narratives the US government uses to support Israel's war on Palestinians. These narratives fuel its belief that the death count in Gaza is both justified and unavoidable. The US buys into Israel's argument that what the ICJ termed a "plausible genocide", is an act of self-defense. The medical journal The Lancet reported that direct and indirect deaths in Gaza could approach 200,000, about 10% of the total Gazan population. A majority of the dead are children, women and the elderly. All died in the name of "self-defense".

Another argument by the Biden administration to excuse Israel's daily war crimes in Gaza is blaming Hamas for using Palestinians as human shields. Not only is there little evidence but the Israeli newspaper Haaretz recently published a detailed investigation titled: "Israeli Army Uses Palestinian Civilians to Inspect Potentially Booby-trapped Tunnels in Gaza". The report includes testimonials from IDF soldiers who took part.


Counting the dead in Gaza: difficult but essential

Al Jazeera Exposes Israeli Army Use Of Palestinians As Human Shields

Haaretz Investigation: Israeli Army Uses Palestinian Civilians to Inspect Potentially Booby-trapped Tunnels in Gaza
'Our lives are more important than their lives': Gazans not suspected of terrorism are detained and sent as human shields to search tunnels and houses before IDF soldiers enter, with the full knowledge of senior Israeli officers, several sources say; IDF claims this practice is forbidden.

US Has Redefined "Human Shields" to Enable Israel's Slaughter of Gaza Civilians
President Biden and members of Congress have cynically reinterpreted "human shields" to flout international law.

The "Human Shield" Fallacy

Have 'Human Shields' Accusations Become an Excuse for War Crimes?
There is a growing realization that U.S. support for Israel is hampering U.S. diplomacy.

June 1, 2024

Gaza Corner starts off with the latest example of NPR’s misleading coverage of Israel’s war on Gaza. Instead of placing blame on Prime Minister Netanyahu for not negotiating in good faith, NPR continues to focus on Hamas for the lack of a peace deal. This is despite Hamas welcoming Biden’s plan that could lead to a durable ceasefire, while Netanyahu shot holes in it. The balance of Gaza Corner provides listener feedback.


Biden Wants Peace, but Israel Wants War

Biden has introduced a plan to end the Israel-Gaza war. Either side has yet to agree

May 25, 2024

This past week the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Criminal Court (ICC) poured cement onto Israel’s pariah status and further isolated the United States which continues to have Israel’s back at every turn.

Last Monday, Karim Khan, the ICC chief prosecutor, requested pre-trial arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant as well as three Hamas leaders

The other earthquake ruling came from the ICJ which Israel is a signatory. It ruled that Israel must immediately halt its military offensive in Rafah “which may inflict on the Palestinian group in Gaza conditions of life that could bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part.”

These two rulings are a critical test for the 'Rules-Based International Order'.

The 'Rules-Based International Order' has been in a steady decline. But this could be its death knell if Israel, as expected, ignores the rulings especially in Rafah and President Biden supports sanctions against prosecutor Khan.


ICJ Original Court Ruling Document (pdf)

World Court orders halt to Israeli offensive in Rafah

International Court of Justice Orders Israel to Halt Any Rafah Offensive That Harms Civilians
If Israel disobeys an order by the World Court to halt the war or its military operation in Rafah, it could face international sanctions. While the U.S. is expected to back Israel in such a situation, most western governments are likely to stand by the court's decision.

Explained: ICC Arrest Warrants Against Israel's Netanyahu and Gallant - What Are They and What Happens Next?
What are the prosecutor's main claims, how will Israel respond, what happens next - and what does the 'Putin precedent' mean for Israeli leaders?

Can a U.S. Ally Actually Be Held Accountable for War Crimes in the ICC?
ICC warrants against Israeli officials would mean they can't travel - and their patrons in the U.S. would be pressured over continued arms sales.

Biden Unites With Republicans Against International Criminal Court
It's a death spiral for the 'Rules-Based International Order' as Team Biden says it's open to retaliation against the war-crimes court for indicting Israel's genocidaires.

Ilhan Omar and "Moral Equivalence," a Term of Propaganda Invented in the 1980s
The phrase was created by the State Department and assorted neoconservative pundits to shield Reagan from criticism.

May 18, 2024

One word that often pops up when discussing Palestine and Israel is “complicated”.

However, once you learn the history, the root causes of this conflict are not complicated.

It boils down to an indisputable truth. A people seeking a homeland cannot displace the indigenous or native people of the region. It’s a recipe for conflict and instability for generations on end.

May 15 is the date Palestinians commemorate the first Nakba (“Catastrophe”) when the state of Israel was established over the larger part of their homeland in 1948. This required the forced expulsion of over 750,000 Palestinians and preventing their right of return. Palestinians are experiencing a 2nd Nakba right now which has been described by genocide scholars as a “textbook case of genocide”. The slaughter has been enabled with the full complicity of the United States, as it arms and provides political cover to the Israeli government through UN vetoes and other actions.

The truth is the Nakba has been continuous not only for 76 years but also well before Israel was created in 1948.

This Gaza Corner provides a history lesson to better grasp the roots of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and ongoing Nakba.


First and Second Nakba

Nakba: Essential books explaining the ethnic cleansing of Palestine and creation of Israel
Five reads by Palestinian, Jewish, and western authors on the lead-up to and aftermath of the Nakba

A Textbook Case of Genocide

The Roots of Zionist Terrorism

Zionism's Original Sin: Ignoring the Fact That Palestine Was Fully Populated

The Origin of the Palestine-Israel Conflict

The Palestine Question: A Brief History

Persistent myth: The United Nations established the state of Israel.
Israel was not established through the United Nations. Israel was established through warfare and the creation of facts on the ground. Facts it created through the massacre of Palestinians and the ethnic cleansing of hundreds of villages

The Nakba did not start or end in 1948
Key facts and figures on the ethnic cleansing of Palestine.

Ben-Gurion's Notorious Quotes: Their Polemical Uses & Abuses

April 20, 2024

The first part of Gaza Corner discusses the imminent departure of the Freedom Flotilla packed with 5.5 tons of humanitarian aid. Significant obstacles remain, not least of which is doing everything possible to not have a repeat of the Mavi Marmara tragedy in 2010 which resulted in Israeli commandos killing 10 humanitarian activists.

The balance of Gaza Corner analyzes the normalization of genocide in Gaza. TV news coverage and internet searches about Gaza have plummeted. Despite daily mass slaughter in Gaza and a severe escalation of settler violence in the West Bank, it appears mainstream media fatigue is setting in.

The biggest story this week was apparently self-censored by Western mainstream media. However, several prominent news outlets in the Middle East reported that Prime Minister Netanyahu received American approval for a long sought ground military operation in Rafah in return for Israel limiting its military response inside Iran. If true, Biden’s complicity in the ongoing Gaza genocide deepens as more catastrophic horror unfolds.


Freedom Flotilla activists determined to set sail to Gaza despite Israeli threats
Civil groups prepare four ships to break Gaza siege, but are conscious Israel might target them as it did the Mavi Marmara in 2010. More info at Freedom Flotilla Coalition

Israel Tries To Block All Aid To Gaza
Israel's deadly blockade on Gaza has moved to another level. Nowadays humanitarian relief organizations and humanitarian workers engaged with aid to Gaza are blocked through unbelievable accusations and cunning schemes.

Israeli attack kills 10, mostly children, in Gaza's Rafah
Funerals are held for Palestinians killed in Tal as-Sultan neighbourhood, as Israel continues to target southernmost Rafah.

Israel's Response to Iranian Attack Impacts Legitimacy of an Operation in Rafah
According to reports, Egypt and the Palestinian Authority have already accepted the fact that Israel will enter Rafah, and have begun preparations for absorbing the displaced and managing civil affairs.

Israel Considers Attacking Iran and Invading Rafah as Netanyahu Seeks Lifelines to Stay in Power

US and Israel meet on Rafah days after Iran's attack

U.S. and Israel hold high-level talks on Rafah amid Iran tensions

US approves Rafah operation in exchange for no widespread Israeli counter-strikes on Iran

April 6, 2024

Gaza Corner discusses the hypocrisy of President Biden's outrage over the 6 Westerners deliberately killed in the World Central Kitchen attack. Yet Biden continues to provide Israel with the bombs that have massacred 40,000 Gazans along with 200 humanitarian aid workers.

This is a stark reminder that Palestinians deaths are not viewed the same way as Western deaths. The racism cannot be more evident.


Epidemics, Famine, Untreated Wounds: Things Are About to Get Much Worse in Gaza
Epidemiologists warn that if the humanitarian crisis in Gaza continues, the death toll could reach 100,000 - or even top 120,000

The lives of other aid workers killed in Gaza
Interview with Juliette Touma, director of communications for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNWRA)

Israel Pays a Political Price for Killing Aid Workers - When They're Not Palestinians
The attack that killed seven volunteers from World Central Kitchen is Israel's latest assault on the humanitarian aid system in Gaza. This time most of the dead are Westerners, so Israel will have a hard time playing the strike down

Road to Famine: Israeli Law Prof. Neve Gordon on Israel's History of Weaponizing Food Access in Gaza

Nancy Pelosi | Conflict Zone (Video interview)

February 17, 2024

Sixteen Western countries led by the US suspended aid to UNWRA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees. This could not come at a worse time as Gazans face death by bombardment, disease and starvation on a daily basis. Starving UNWRA of vital funds feeds into Israel’s long standing goal to eliminate this vital life saving humanitarian agency for Palestinian refugees.

Gaza Corner does a deep dive not only into the aid suspension but the true motive behind Israel’s quest to shut UNWRA down.


Urgent Letter From Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini to the President of the UN General Assembly

Statement to the media by Philippe Lazzarini, UNWRA Commissioner-General

Why Donors Should Not Suspend Aid to UNRWA
(An excellent explainer in Q&A format by Crisis Group Expert Daniel Forti)

The 8 Days That Roiled the U.N.'s Top Agency in Gaza
The crisis that threatens the future of the main United Nations agency in Gaza, amid a humanitarian disaster, began at a routine meeting between diplomats in Tel Aviv.

The Campaign to Abolish UNRWA
The recent defunding of the aid agency is part of a longstanding effort to extinguish Palestinian refugees' dreams of return.

Israel Says Over 30 UN Aid Workers in Gaza Participated in Hamas Attacks on October 7

UNRWA refutes Israeli implications of Hamas tunnel below Gaza HQ

Jeremy Scahill: Israel Has Waged a "Deliberate Propaganda Campaign" to Justify Brutal Gaza Assault

Israel's evidence of UNRWA Hamas allegations examined

Israel's Beef Isn't With UNRWA. It's With Palestinian Refugees' Right of Return

When the West Collectively Punishes Gaza by Suspending Funding to UNRWA

Ex-UNRWA Official Chris Gunness: Funding Cuts Make Donor Countries Complicit in Starvation of Gaza

Gaza: Suspending UNRWA Aid Risks Hastening Famine

The World Needs to Stand by UNRWA

Palestinians in the West Bank Fear UNRWA Closure After Israel's Allegations of Hamas Ties

January 27, 2024

The International Court of Justice, (ICJ), is the world’s highest court in the international legal system. On January 26 it ruled that the claim of genocide brought to the court by South Africa against Israel in its war on Gaza is “plausible” and presents a “real and imminent risk”. The court ordered six provisional measures but stopped short of ordering an immediate cease-fire. The actual genocide ruling won't be decided for years. Directives by the ICJ are binding but not enforceable unless the UN Security Council passes a resolution to enforce them. The US has veto power which it has used repeatedly to provide Israel with impunity from its violations of international law. Gaza Corner dissects the historic ICJ ruling.

International Holocaust Remembrance Day

International Court of Justice Orders Israel to Prevent Genocide in Gaza But Fails to Order Ceasefire

ICJ Ruling on Gaza Genocide Is a Historic Victory for the Palestinians That Israel Vows to Defy
While the 17-judge panel ordered Israel to halt any genocidal acts in Gaza, it stopped short of ordering immediate ceasefire.

Israel, Palestinians, and World React to ICJ
Netanyahu Decries ICJ's Genocide Consideration; U.S. Labels It 'Unfounded'

"I Have Lost Everything": In Federal Court, Palestinians Accuse Biden of Complicity in Genocide
Bolstered by a momentous ICJ ruling, Palestinians, including Americans, gave three hours of testimony against the Biden administration.

ICJ orders Israel to prevent genocidal acts in Gaza and punish calls for incitement
In a historic ruling against Israel for apparent acts of genocide, the International Court of Justice called on Israel to immediately prevent genocidal acts in Gaza and punish calls for incitement. The case against Israel will now move forward.

Amnesty International: Israel must comply with key ICJ ruling ordering it do all in its power to prevent genocide against Palestinians in Gaza

ICJ Fires Warning Shot at Israel Over Genocide Case at World Court. This Is Why Netanyahu Should Be Worried
The International Court of Justice's provisional ruling on Friday brought mixed news for Israel: Although it wasn't told to cease fire in Gaza, its orders could create a major headache for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with his far-right ministers.

ICJ ruling in Gaza genocide case renews calls to end Israel arms transfers
Advocates urge countries to suspend arms sales to Israel after top UN court says risk of genocide in Gaza plausible.

Explainer | Charging Israel With Genocide at the ICJ: The Petition, the Precedents and the Punishment
Why did South Africa file the petition against Israel for its conduct in Gaza at the International Court of Justice in The Hague? Why is Israel interested in cooperating with the proceedings? What are the possible outcomes?

Why the International Community Made It So Difficult to Prosecute the Crime of Genocide

Gaza Shows the Difference Between International Law and the "Rules-Based International Order"
Adherence to US hegemony determines who does-and does not-get to violate the architecture restraining state violence.

New Filings in Gaza Genocide Lawsuit: Palestinians Refute Biden Admin Arguments That Court Cannot Review Its Role in Furthering Israel's Genocide

"Failure to Prevent Genocide": Biden Sued as U.S. Provides Arms & Support for Israel's Gaza Assault

January 20, 2024

Long-time Israeli peace activist Gershon Baskin is the special guest live from Jerusalem on this almost hour long Gaza Corner. Baskin is best known as the Israeli citizen who cultivated a secret direct channel to Hamas which resulted in the freeing of Gilad Shalit in 2011 after 5+ years in captivity. Baskin covers a wide range of topics including his own attempts to resolve the current hostage crisis. Gershon Baskin is the author of two books: The Negotiator: Freeing Gilad Schalit from Hamas and In Pursuit of Peace in Israel and Palestine.


Q&A on the hostage issue

For Years, Two Men Shuttled Messages Between Israel and Hamas. No Longer.
Since 2006, Gershon Baskin, an Israeli peace activist, and Ghazi Hamad, a Hamas official, maintained a secret back channel between Gaza and Israel. Then Oct. 7 happened.

Israel's Failed Bombing Campaign in Gaza
Collective Punishment Won't Defeat Hamas

The Lesson of 9/11 Is That Israel Cannot Win Its Gaza War
Biden says he doesn't want Israel to repeat America's mistakes, so why is he supporting Israel as it does exactly that?

Hamas says it does not oppose a state along the 1967 borders

December 30, 2023

Rabbi Arik Ascherman, the founder and director of Torat Tzedek is interviewed for close to an hour on Gaza Corner.

Rabbi Arik has a long history as a human right defender. He prioritizes being out in the field to live among and protect Palestinians facing violence and forced expulsion from fanatical messianic settlers. He's been doing it for decades as settler violence is nothing new. But the current onslaught has accelerated exponentially since October 7, literally erasing rural Palestinian communities through forced expulsion. This, coupled with the ongoing genocide in Gaza, is a second Nakba.

Donations to Torat Tzedek, a small but vitally important organization, has an outsized impact. Thank-you!


Wadi Jḥeish Journal

Susiya Journal

Rights activist rabbi beaten in settler attack near illegal West Bank outpost
Masked man assaults Arik Ascherman while another takes his phone in area around Ma'aleh Ahuvia, evacuated by Israeli security forces the day before; police open probe into incident.

Settler Teen Who Attacked Activist Rabbi at Knifepoint Gets Community Service
Rabbi Arik Ascherman was attacked while assisting Palestinians with an olive harvest; Judge says teenager has good chance at rehabilitation.
Video of Rabbi Arik Ascherman being attacked by a settler with a knife in 2015.

Attack on Israeli rabbi part of unchecked settler violence

If Settler Violence Wasn't Enough, Israel Is Now Depriving Jordan Valley Palestinians of Water
Since the start of the war, some 20 Palestinian families have been forced out of their homes in the Jordan Valley by heightened settler violence. Meanwhile, the army denies the shepherd communities access to water. Israeli volunteers are trying to protect them day and night.

How American citizens are leading rise of 'settler violence' on Palestinian lands
The Biden administration instituted a travel ban on extremist Jewish settlers who attack Palestinians but there is a glaring loophole for US citizens.

Decemeber 23, 2023

Gaza Corner covers much ground including Palestinian Christians being wiped out in Gaza and why Israel’s ongoing mass slaughter of Gazans meets the textbook definition of genocide. This segment also details how independent investigations by organizations including the Washington Post cast doubt on Israeli propaganda.


Christmas cancelled: US Palestinians feel no holiday joy amid war on Gaza

Christmas Canceled in Bethlehem as Churches Mourn 20,000+ Palestinians Killed in Gaza

"Failure to Prevent Genocide": Biden Sued as U.S. Provides Arms & Support for Israel's Gaza Assault

'Erase Gaza': How genocidal rhetoric became normalised in Israel

More Than 100 Members of This Gaza Clan Have Been Killed in War

A Times Investigation Tracked Israel's Use of One of Its Most Destructive Bombs in South Gaza

Victory is an opportunity for Israel in the midst of crisis - opinion

Israel's "Humanitarian" Expulsion
The Israeli right is capitalizing on the aftermath of October 7th to build support for a permanent transfer of Palestinians out of Gaza.

Expel all Palestinians from Gaza, recommends Israeli government ministry

The "Human Shield" Fallacy

WHO delivers health supplies to Al-Shifa Hospital, appeals for continued access to address urgent needs in north Gaza

The case of al-Shifa: Investigating the assault on Gaza's largest hospital

Al-Shifa Hospital, Hamas's Tunnels, and Israeli Propaganda
As Israel wages its propaganda war over Al-Shifa, it is simultaneously laying siege to yet another medical facility.

Israel: Starvation Used as Weapon of War in Gaza
Evidence Indicates Civilians Deliberately Denied Access to Food, Water

Disease could kill more in Gaza than bombs, WHO says amid Israeli siege

December 9, 2023

Gerard Horton of Military Court Watch (MCW) is the guest for the entirety of Gaza Corner. MCW monitors the treatment of children in Israeli military detention. In addition to describing deteriorating prison conditions and use of torture such as solitary confinement, Horton discusses the terrorizing of Palestinian communities that reside near settlements. He also details the mass unlawful transfer of child prisoners out of occupied territory. Horton also questions the validity of the global rules based order if we abandon it when it comes to Israel.


Reports on the systematic torture and/or ill treatment of protected persons (children) and their unlawful transfer from occupied territory (2013-2023)

The U.S. Should Think Twice About Israel's Plans for Gaza

Six Palestinians die in Israeli Custody

UN Human Rights Office - OPT: Dramatic rise in detention of Palestinians across occupied West Bank

Gaza Shows the Difference Between International Law and the "Rules-Based International Order"

Israel-Hamas Hostage Deal Highlights Plight of Palestinian Prisoners, Many of Them Children

November 25, 2023

On 22 November, 2023 the New York Times published an op-ed by Senator Bernie Sanders that did not call for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza. Dore Stein devotes this Gaza Corner segment to dissecting the op-ed, because for many progressives and Bernie supporters, his position was shocking.


Op-Ed by Bernie Sanders: Justice for the Palestinians and Security for Israel

Can the Palestinian Authority Really Govern Gaza After the War?
Considered authoritarian and corrupt, the Palestinian Authority is still Washington's choice to run the enclave. But many believe it can be credible now only if it includes Hamas.

Gaza has become a moonscape in war. When the battles stop, many fear it will remain uninhabitable

No safe place - tracking civilian harm in southern Gaza

UNGA calls for humanitarian truce in Israel-Gaza war
The resolution passed with 120 votes in favour, 14 against and 45 abstentions.

November 18, 2023

Israel and the Western mainstream media are pushing a narrative that the current ‘war’ began on October 7 with Hamas’ attack on innocent Israeli civilians. As UN Secretary-General Antonio Guiterres stated, the attack “did not happen in a vacuum…The Palestinian people have been subjected to 56 years of suffocating occupation,” October 7 is one date among many massacres and points of reference which are outlined on Gaza Corner.

This segment also discusses the increasing voices demanding a cease-fire, and Senator Bernie Sanders flawed reasons for not supporting one.

Host Dore Stein also explains how Israel’s war on Palestinians has taken advantage of all eyes on Gaza by accelerating forced transfer, mass incarceration and killings in the West Bank.

Gaza Corner concludes with "Oulenohaa", a moving a cappella piece by Palestinian vocalist Amal Murkus.


The Nakba did not start or end in 1948
Key facts and figures on the ethnic cleansing of Palestine.

Notorious massacres of Palestinians between 1937 & 1948

Fact Sheet: The Palestinian Nakba & The Establishment of Israeli Apartheid

Details of 1948 Massacres against Palestinians Revealed in Classified Israeli Documents

How the 1929 Hebron massacre invigorated the Zionist movement

A brief, unhappy history of Israeli massacres

In Britain, Reality Is Cleaving in Two
An overwhelming majority of Britons back a cease-fire.

L.A. Times Editorial: Cease-fire now. The killing in Gaza must stop

Haaretz Editorial: We Need a Ceasefire in Gaza Now

Gaza needs a humanitarian pause. Then we need a vision of where we go from here

Bernie Sanders faces blowback as progressives urge cease-fire in Gaza

Timeline: Israel's attacks on Gaza since 2005

A Population Transfer Under the Cover of War: A Visit to the Forsaken Land of Settler Militias
Since the start of the war, residents of 16 Palestinian shepherding communities have been forced out of their villages by settlers. The South Hebron Hills are now being ruled effectively by local defense squads, made up in many cases by violent settlers in uniform who are committing a population transfer.

Israel/OPT: Horrifying cases of torture and degrading treatment of Palestinian detainees amid spike in arbitrary arrests

The pogroms are working - the transfer is already happening

Hamas accepts Palestinian state with 1967 borders
Khaled Meshaal presents a new document in which Hamas accepts 1967 borders without recognising state of Israel.

September 30, 2023

Senator Diane Feinstein died September 29 at the age of 90.

If you read the corporate media obituaries including NPR, the New York Times, Washington Post, etc., one would have no idea that Senator Feinstein was significantly active in promoting and protecting Palestinian rights, especially (I know it’s a low bar) when compared to the overwhelming majority of her colleagues in Congress. Just last month Senator Feinstein halted demolition of two Palestinian schools. Her leadership also helped prevent impending demolitions in Susya and Khan al-Ahmar.

Perhaps the person most instrumental in educating Senator Feinstein and her staff about the dangers facing Palestinians especially in the West Bank and Gaza is Donna Baranski Walker, the Executive Director of Bay Area based Rebuilding Alliance. Donna is the special guest on this Gaza Corner segment.


J Street Mourns the Passing of Senator Dianne Feinstein

Dianne Feinstein, the US Senate's longest-serving Jewish member, dies at 90

Feinstein to Netanyahu: Don't Annex West Bank

May 13, 2023

Gaza Corner does a deep dive into the meaning of May 15 for Palestinians and Israelis. It analyzes why the Nakba (catastrophe) is ongoing for Palestinians. The Nakba continues as the world does nothing to stop it. The United States is complicit as it continues to provide Israel unconditional military, financial and diplomatic support.


Revisiting the UNGA Partition Resolution

The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine

Ongoing Nakba

Analysis: Could Israel Carry Out Another Nakba?
Expulsionist sentiment is common in Israeli society and politics. To ignore the warning signs is to abdicate responsibility.

The Nakba did not start or end in 1948
Key facts and figures on the ethnic cleansing of Palestine.

Opinion | This Is the Biggest Myth About Israel and the Nakba
It is one of the most enduring myths surrounding the 1948 war: The epic battle between a fearsome Arab Goliath and a newborn Israel to liberate Palestine. And it's a fable that continues to inflict harm today. Palestinians are still paying the price for one of the most enduring myths surrounding the Arab-Israeli war of 1948.

Zionist Icon or Arab Oppressor? A Filmmaker Explores the Mixed Legacy of Her Great-grandfather
Yosef Weitz, who led the Jewish National Fund, was revered by his family. But a new film, set for release next week at the DocAviv festival, delves into some of the more troubling policies he promoted in Israel's early years.

April 8, 2023

Gaza Corner covers Israel’s brutal police raid of Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. The 2nd segment shifts to what could be a landmark Supreme Court decision in Israel. Since 1950, the Absentee Property Law has been manipulated as a form of legal abuse to evict Palestinians who have lived legally in their homes for generations. However, in a rare Palestinian victory, the Supreme court ruled in favour of the Sumreen family, blocking settlers from displacing them.


'The Israeli police wanted to show that they are in control of Al-Aqsa'
Writer Jalal Abukhater explains the context behind a violent raid in Al-Aqsa, and why the mosque is more than a place of worship for Palestinians.

Jewish Activists Fueled the Flames, but Israel Police Sparked the Temple Mount Fire
Aside from one lethal incident, Ramadan in Jerusalem had been exceptionally quiet. But Jewish activists seeking a Passover sacrifice on the Temple Mount and the police's falling into the same old trap reignited the flashpoint site
Annex and Disposess: Use of Absentee Property Law

Israel's Supreme Court Rules Against Evicting Palestinian Family in East Jerusalem After 32-year Battle
The judges rejected a request by the Jewish National Fund, who wanted to evict the 18 members of the Palestinian family, and ordered its subsidiary to compensate them.

Israeli Supreme Court rules against eviction of east Jerusalem family
Israel's top court has ended a 32-year battle, ruling that the Jewish National Fund cannot evict the Palestinian Sumarin family from their home in the Silwan neighborhood of Jerusalem.

January 28, 2023

Gaza Corner observes International Holocaust Remembrance Day through the words of Auschwitz survivor Helen Lazar. Her words are preserved in the Wally Brill recording A Typical Day (in Auschwitz). This is an interview with Helen.

Awareness of the Holocaust has not helped governments recognize and speak out against crimes against humanity. This includes U.S. silence over Zionist crimes against humanity committed against Palestinians beginning with the Nakba in 1947-48 when over 750,000 indigenous Palestinians were forcibly expelled from their homeland.

International Holocaust Remembrance Day

A Holocaust remembrance - and lessons we have yet to learn
Oral History Interview With Helen Lazar (video)
Nakba bill introduced by Rep. Tlaib, Rashida

December 31, 2022

Gaza Corner describes the year in review in Palestine and Israel.


2022 in review: Palestine's moment of truth
2022 dispelled the illusions that Palestinian collaboration with Israel is sustainable and that Zionism is anything other than a movement constantly at war with the Palestinian people.

Year-in-review: A deadly year for Palestinian children

December 17, 2022

Whether due to bias or self-censorship, NPR has a long history of misleading coverage of Israel and Palestine. Gaza Corner brings this to light by dissecting part of a recent interview with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by NPR's Morning Edition host Steve Inskeep.


Steve Inskeep Interview with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
'They are joining me. I'm not joining them': Netanyahu defends far-right allies. [Transcript]

'A Democracy in Name Only': Israel's AG Sounds Alarm Over Netanyahu's Legislative Blitz
Israel's attorney general's warning comes after the incoming government wasted no time with their legislative agenda, passing preliminary readings of three key bills on Tuesday that grant significant powers to Benjamin Netanyahu's far-right allies

Far-right Lawmakers Introduce Bill Permitting Return to West Bank Settlements Evacuated in 2005

Toadying to the Far Right, Netanyahu Fears the Wrath of His Own Lawmakers

Netanyahu Turns a Blind Eye as His Far-right Partners Plot West Bank Revolution
Religious Zionism wants to get control of planning, supervising and approving construction in settlements and illegal outposts, while undermining the systems that currently exist - and the U.S. is watching closely

December 3, 2022

Gaza Corner details why this year's World Cup has a deadly and corrupt stain on it.


The Dark Side of the World Cup
Heidi Blake on FIFA's dirty business, and how Qatar came to host the games.

At Qatar's World Cup, Where Politics and Pleasure Collide

Qatar World Cup Chief Publicly Admits High Migrant Death Tolls
Without Compensation, al-Thawadi's "One Death is Too Many" Statement Rings Hollow

Why This World Cup Is Dogged by Corruption Allegations
FIFA's system allegedly fostered bribery, but despite years of investigations and arrests it's still in place.

It's Going to Be a Weird World Cup
The tournament in Qatar is a moral debacle that will also rivet much of humanity's attention for the next month.

World Cup in Qatar Is "Deadliest Major Sporting Event" in History, Built on a Decade of Forced Labor

Qatar is taking the heat for FIFA corruption
Investigations into FIFA's actions reveal the global soccer organization has a long history of bribery and money-laundering. Will that change?

'Project Merciless': how Qatar spied on the world of football in Switzerland
Qatar orchestrated a large-scale and long-standing intelligence operation against FIFA officials with the help of former CIA operatives. Switzerland was a key theatre of operations. The highest echelons of the Qatari government were involved.

The 2022 World Cup is being hosted in Qatar, which, as everyone knows, is pronounced…

Revealed: 6,500 migrant workers have died in Qatar since World Cup awarded
Guardian analysis indicates shocking figure over the past decade likely to be an underestimate

Qatar: New laws to protect migrant workers are a step in the right direction

October 29, 2022

Gaza Corner profiles rising political star and Jewish supremacist Itamar Ben-Givr. He advocates unleashing violent ethnonationalism and forced expulsion of "disloyal" Palestinians. Ben-Givr has been indicted 53 times, seven of which ended in convictions, including memberhsip in a terrorist organization.


Joshua Leifer on Itamar Ben-Gvir

Kahanism's Raucous Return
Knesset member Itamar Ben-Gvir, a follower of far-right ideologue Meir Kahane, is surging in popularity on the promise of realizing ideas like the forced expulsion of Palestinians and leftists.

Otzma Yehudit Campaign Ad Criticizes IDF Rules of Engagement

Ben-Gvir's Party Members Trying to Form Armed Militia in Tel Aviv Suburb

Itamar Ben Gvir is quintessentially Zionist
Itamar Ben Gvir's rise is causing great alarm for liberal Zionists because his overtly fascist Jewish Power Party reflects many of the same Zionist values they uphold.

As Israel Votes, Again, Netanyahu Pins Hopes on the Far Right

Surging racist Ben Gvir is potential kingmaker in Israel - and 'NYT' hides him from readers

Will Israel face Democratic pushback over racist politician Itamar Ben-Gvir?

October 1, 2022

The first segment of Gaza Corner discusses the hypocrisy of the United States and Israel condemning Russia’s annexation moves in Ukraine. The second segment details how Facebook and Instagram have been censoring Palestinian voices critical of the Israeli government, including those who document Israeli state violence.


We Won't Recognize the Annexation

Human Rights Due Diligence of Meta's Impacts in Israel and Palestine in May 2021, Insights and Recommendations, September 2022

Full Meta Response: Israel and Palestine Due Diligence Exercise

An Independent Due Diligence Exercise into Meta's Human Rights Impact in Israel and Palestine During the May 2021 Escalation

Human Rights Watch Statement Regarding BSR's HRA for Meta on Palestine & Israel

Facebook Report Concludes Company Censorship Violated Palestinian Human Rights
The report said Facebook and Instagram showed bias against Palestinians during a brutal Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip last May.

Outside audit says Facebook restricted Palestinian posts during Gaza war

Glenn Greenwald: Is Facebook Operating as an Arm of the Israeli State by Removing Palestinian Posts?

Facebook Says It Is Deleting Accounts at the Direction of the U.S. and Israeli Governments

September 24, 2022

Gaza Corner discusses the likely problems arising from Marvel Studios' recently announced 2024 movie titled “Captain America: New World Order”. It stars a heroine from Israel named Sabra who plays the role of a super powered Mossad agent. The Mossad is Israel’s spy agency known for torture, oppression and assassination of Palestinians and other Arabs.


Disney's new Israeli superhero film hits a raw nerve with Arabs

The latest addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe is a crusader for Israeli apartheid

September 10, 2022

Gaza Corner delves into its sham military court system which relies on forced confessions and plea bargaining. Palestinian aid worker Mohammed Halabi refused to play by Israel's rules and spent an Israeli record 6 years in pre-trial detention. Israel's military court recently sentenced Halibi to 12 years (net 6). This is despite Israeli officials involved in the case confiding to Halabi's lawyer that they know he is innocent.


Kafka in Gaza: How Israel turned a Palestinian aid worker into a 'terrorist'
All of the evidence in Mohammed Halabi's six-year trial was either 'secret' or implausible. That didn't stop Israel sentencing him to 12 years in prison.

Israel sentences Gaza aid worker to 12 years after sham trial

Quash flawed conviction of aid worker Mohammed al-Halabi

Israeli court finds Gaza aid worker guilty of financing terrorism
Mohammad El Halabi convicted of diverting aid to Hamas despite UN concerns over lack of evidence in six-year-long case

'The Truth Stands With Mohammad': Israel's Outrageous Trial of Mohammad al-Halabi

Has a lone Palestinian aid worker been falsely accused of the biggest aid money heist in history?
Mohammed El Halabi is accused of stealing relief money and giving it to Hamas for their war effort against Israel. But five years on, the evidence against him looks seriously flawed.

Note: Excellent investigative work.


After 3 years, accusations against Gaza World Vision head remain unproven
Mohammed Halabi, arrested in 2016 by Israel on accusations of diverting charity funds to Hamas, is still behind bars. Dozens of court hearings later, the state has yet to present evidence against him.

Note: Excellent investigative work.


Christian charity 'top of Israel's target list'
Campaign against World Vision's Gaza office part of systemic crackdown by Israel on international NGOs, analysts say.

Why I am a humanitarian

August 27, 2022

Gaza Corner analyzes how President Biden's lack of human rights priorities has emboldened Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler, Mohammed bin Salman, to escalate his unprecedented crackdown on dissent at home and abroad. On March 12, 81 men were executed in one of the kingdom’s largest recent mass executions. In early August a Saudi terrorism court sentenced a Saudi women rights defender to 34 years in prison. Her crime was retweeting tweets by Saudi activists living in exile, which called for the freeing of Saudi prisoners of conscience.


Saudi woman jailed for Twitter use alleges abuse during detention
Salma Al-Shehab alleged she had been 'repeatedly accosted' by at least five men for belonging to the kingdom's Shia Muslim minority.

Student's sentencing shows risk of social media for Saudis (audio)

Female Saudi activist gets record 34 years in prison for critical tweets

More Saudi brutality shows that MBS's promises to Biden were a farce

Saudi woman given 34-year prison sentence for using Twitter

Saudi Women's Rights Activist and Mother of Two Sentenced to 34-years in Jail

Ex-Twitter employee found guilty of spying on Saudi dissidents
Ahmad Abouammo found to have given users' personal information to Mohammed bin Salman's aide.

The U.S. Is Investigating Harassment of Saudi Dissidents (includes video interview)

Despite Rhetoric, Biden is Continuing Trump's Weapons Sales

'Outmaneuvered': Three takeaways from Biden's visit to Saudi Arabia

US claims it only sells 'defensive' weapons to Saudi Arabia. But does this distinction exist?
Reports say Washington is considering lifting a ban on 'offensive' weapons to Riyadh. Experts say there is no distinction between offensive and defensive weapons.

Biden to Travel to Saudi Arabia, Ending Its 'Pariah' Status
As a candidate, President Biden vowed to punish the kingdom for the brutal assassination of Jamal Khashoggi. But now he wants to rebuild relations as he seeks to lower gas prices and isolate Russia.

August 6, 2022

Gaza Corner discusses the latest Israeli bombing assault in Gaza. Also analyzed is the legal right of a population under military occupation to defend itself "by all available means, including armed struggle".


Inside Story: Will fighting in Gaza trigger a wider war?
a 24 minute video on lastest Gaza bombing by Israel and what led to it with guests from Palestine and Israel

What Lapid Stands to Gain or Lose From Gaza
It's not just Lapid's leadership being tested now in Gaza, but the entire vision of Israel's 'change government' over the past year.

A Continuation of Israel's Policies

Israel launches airstrikes against Islamic Jihad in Gaza
Three months before the Nov. 1 elections, and following growing tensions on Gaza border, Prime Minister Yair Lapid decided to respond forcefully to Islamic Jihad threats.

BREAKING: Israeli forces killed 5-year-old Alaa Abdullah Riyad Qaddoum today in an airstrike in the Shuja'iyya neighborhood of Gaza City. Alaa's father and six-year-old brother were injured in the same attack. #GazaUnderAttack

Israel kills 10 in surprise attacks on Gaza

What the war in Ukraine taught us, Palestinians
We fight our oppressors, and we get branded terrorists. Ukrainians do the same, and they get applauded for their courage.

Palestinians have a legal right to armed struggle
It's time for Israel to accept that as an occupied people, Palestinians have a right to resist - in every way possible.

Occupation and international humanitarian law: questions and answers

Armed conflict, Expulsions and deportations, Human rights and international humanitarian law, Inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, Occupation, Palestine question, Prisoners and detainees, Self-determination
United Nations: The Question of Palestine Right of peoples to self-determination/Struggle by all available means - General Assembly resolution

July 30, 2022

Gaza Corner discusses how Germany has turned the Holocaust and its memory into a means for rejecting any criticism of Israel.


Germany Provides a Kosher Stamp for the Israeli Occupation

The Challenge of Defending Memory in Germany
A Berlin conference organized to combat right-wing appropriation of Holocaust memory faces enduring backlash over Palestine.

Germany puts artists, academics in its anti-Palestinian crosshairs
In the span of just a few months, four high-profile Palestinians have been censored and attacked in Germany for their views after being accused by pro-Israel groups of antisemitism.

What Germans Owe Palestinians and Jews

Palestinians in Germany fear new level of repression after Nakba Day crackdown
Claiming to fight antisemitism, Berlin police arrested 170 people for carrying flags and keffiyehs during a flash mob marking Palestinians' mass expulsion.

Is Germany paying for the surveillance of Palestinians and their supporters?
German-Palestinian academic Anna-Esther Younes was disinvited from speaking publicly after a state-funded body spread a secret dossier about her. She may not be alone.

Palestinian activist deported from Germany fights to appeal 'racist and discriminatory' decision

Deutsche Welle Firings Set Chilling Precedent for Free Speech in Germany
Seven Arab and Muslim journalists have lost their jobs for the alleged "antisemitism" of criticizing Israel.

The inquisition of Nemi El-Hassan
The campaign to cancel a Palestinian-German journalist is not aimed at fighting antisemitism, but at suppressing Palestinians' political existence.

In Germany, a Witch Hunt Is Raging Against Critics of Israel. Cultural Leaders Have Had Enough
Scholars are boycotted for signing a petition, artists are subjected to background checks and critical texts are censored. Now, in an unprecedented move, leaders of top German cultural institutions have joined forces to declare: enough

Berlin Jewish Museum Director Resigns After Tweet Supporting BDS Freedom of Speech
Peter Schäfer steps down days after sharing of petition calling on German government not to adopt motion defining anti-Israel boycotts as anti-Semitic

Germany's relentless campaign to silence pro-Palestinian voices

July 23, 2022

Gaza Corner reviews Trump’s most consequential policies and decisions regarding Israel and Palestine and what actions Biden has taken in response. In the big picture, Trump and Biden are alarmingly similar in allowing Israel to ratchet up mistreatment of Paestinians as impunity reigns.


Israel-Palestine US policy: What changed under Biden, what didn't
As Joe Biden visits Israel and Palestine, Al Jazeera examines how his policies compare to Donald Trump's approach.

Biden's Pledges to Palestinians - a Year of Disappointment
The new administration promised a policy based on valuing Palestinian and Israeli lives equally. That promise has not been kept.

Trump-era Israeli settlement growth proceeds in his absence

Israel Surpasses 1,000 Demolitions in the Occupied West Bank Since Joe Biden Took Office
While the U.S. president refuses to condition military aid, Israel has toppled more than twice as many Palestinian structures in the West Bank than it had by this point in Trump's term.

Why Biden's Jerusalem consulate promise remains unfulfilled

Biden is breaking promise to Palestinians - because Israelis don't want us to reopen consulate

July 2, 2022

On May 4, 2022 Israel’s High Court approved the largest single forced expulsion of Palestinians since the 1967 war. Human rights activist Jim Haber provides an update on the situation in Masafer Yatta aka the South Hebron Hills. Jim joined the Center for Jewish Nonviolence delegation from June 6 to 15. They stood in solidarity with the Palestinians whose families have lived in this region since before the creation of Israel.

Links:


"They're not arriving with trucks to deport us, but the goal is the same"

Israeli Settler Indicted for Throwing Stones at Left-wing Activists

Army stands by as settlers attack activists in Masafer Yatta

Violent Israeli Settlers Are Starting to Resemble the KKK

May 14, 2022

Shireen Abu Akleh was a fixture in Palestinian homes as the voice and face for the Palestinian cause since the time of the Second Intifada in 2002. Strong evidence points to the iconic broadcaster being shot to death by an Israeli sniper as she attempted to document an Israeli raid on the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank. Israel wants to silence the Palestinian narrative and therefore Palestinian journalists are targets. Even in death Shireen was a threat as Israeli security forces attacked mourners at her funeral in Jerusalem. Israel was intent on squashing any outpouring of Palestinian nationalism at Abu Akleh’s funeral procession. Former colleague, friend, and protégé, MSNBC’s Ayman Mohyeldin described the scene: “This is what a dehumanizing occupation looks like. It deprives Palestinians even of their right to mourn, their right to express grief in whatever way brings them comfort and closure. This is what it means to be oppressed…to be subjugated, to be silenced by a state that shows its force with bullets, batons, bulldozers and bombs. As we watched the horrific scenes during her funeral, we’re reminded that even when mourning their dead, Palestinians can’t be Palestinian.”

The fact that Israeli security committed this barbarity in full view of the world indicates just how confident Israel is that there will no global consequences to its continued assault on Palestinian rights.


Shireen Abu Akleh: Israel won't investigate killing of Palestinian-American journalist

Ayman Mohyeldin on the Killing of journalist Shireen Abu Akleh

Shireen Abu Akleh was a voice for Palestine. Israeli police didn't let them mourn in peace.

“You Cannot Unsee This Image”: Rashid Khalidi on the colonial logic that devalues eyewitness accounts of the murder of Shireen Abu Akleh

The Problems With Israel's Version of the Killing of Reporter Shireen Abu AklehIdeas

American reporter killed by IDF, Al Jazeera says

Shireen Abu Akleh killing: The West cannot wash away the stain of complicity

Shireen Abu Akleh: Who said what in US Congress on slain reporter

Death of a Journalist

Latest Abu Akleh killing updates

May 7, 2022

Israel recently celebrated its 74th Independence Day. Israel’s creation coincides with the Nakba or “Catastrophe”’ which marks the expulsion of the Palestinian people from Palestine. Approximately 750,000 Palestinians were forced into exile between late 1947 and mid 1949. The Nakba is not a one-time event. Ethnic cleansing is ongoing.

On the very day Israelis celebrated Independence Day, Israel’s High Court provided tangible proof that the Nakba continues with a ruling that approved one of the largest forcible transfers of Palestinians from their land since 1967. Well over 1,000 residents of 8 herding communities in Masafer Yatta, aka the South Hebron Hills, are facing forced displacement by Israeli forces on a moment’s notice. It is a blatant violation of the 1949 Geneva Convention which states: “Individual or mass forcible transfers, as well as deportations of protected persons from occupied territory to the territory of the Occupying Power or to that of any other country, occupied or not, are prohibited, regardless of their motive.”

Israel’s High Court said that when international law contradicts Israeli law, the latter prevails. And that kind of says it all.

Rebuilding Alliance Action: Ask your House & Senate offices to Zoom for Masafer Yatta, the largest forced relocation of Palestinians since 1967

Israel Begins Demolition in Masafer Yatta Following Court Ruling

Firing Zone 918 - An Exercise in War Crimes: Facing expulsion (2:26)

The international community must prevent the forcible transfer of Masafer Yatta communities, approved by Israel's High court of Justice

Israel High Court Legal Opinion Analysis

Israeli High Court greenlights forcible expulsion of more than 1,000 Palestinians in Masafer Yatta

High Court Justices Know Israel Won't Face Sanctions Over Masafer Yatta Evictions

Israel Blew Up Their Houses in 1966. Now It Claims Their Village Never Existed

40-year-old Document Reveals Ariel Sharon's Plan to Evict 1,000 Palestinians From Their Homes

Settler Attack on Palestinians in Hebron Hills Serves Israeli Policy

April 30, 2022

It’s nearing the twelve year anniversary that Gaza Corner has aired within Tangents on KALW, SF. The primary reason Gaza Corner continues to be a vital source of news and analysis about the Middle East, especially about Israel and Palestine, is the mainstream media consistently fails to cover certain stories. News that is reported often contains misleading language and lacks context.

“Why Reporting on Palestine has to change” is the title of an open letter to fellow journalists signed by 514 media members. It states: “Finding truth and holding the powerful to account are core principles of journalism. Yet for decades, our news industry has abandoned those values in coverage of Israel and Palestine. We have failed our audiences with a narrative that obscures the most fundamental aspects of the story: Israel’s military occupation and its system of apartheid.

For the sake of our readers and viewers—and the truth—we have a duty to change course immediately and end this decades-long journalistic malpractice. The evidence of Israel’s systematic oppression of Palestinians is overwhelming and must no longer be sanitized.”


How media coverage whitewashes Israeli state violence against Palestinians

An open letter on U.S. media coverage of Palestine

'N.Y. Times' editors cover up a major cause of the rising tensions in Jerusalem's Old City

What Jewish Israelis Don't Get About Al-Aqsa

Jordan Pushing to Restore Al-Aqsa Status Quo Amid Jerusalem Tensions, Sources Say

Israel Police Required Al-Aqsa Worshippers to Hand Over IDs, in Violation of Law

A Site Holy to Jews and Muslims Returns as the Nexus of Conflict

March 19, 2022

This segment is devoted to Gaza Corner Listener Comments.

March 5, 2022

Gaza Corner expands to learn the latest on the Ukrainian band DakhaBrakha with its long time booking agent Bill Smith.

This episode's links can be found (for now) in the playlist.

February 26, 2022

Gaza Corner analyzes how Israel is impacted by Russia's invasion of Ukraine and why it is doing a balancing act to maintain neutrality.

This episode's links can be found (for now) in the playlist.

February 19, 2022

President Biden recently announced his intention to give half of the $7B in frozen funds that belong to the Afghan people to families of 9/11 victims. The Intercept headlined: Biden’s Decision on Frozen Afghanistan Money Is Tantamount to Mass Murder.

Various international organizations have warned that nearly 10 million Afghans are on the brink of starvation. The International Rescue Committee has been on the ground in Afghanistan since 1980. Its president and CEO, David Miliband, wrote in prepared Congressional testimony: “Business as usual will mean that a starvation crisis kills more Afghans than the past 20 years of war…This crisis will not be solved by more humanitarian aid. Economic collapse makes the humanitarian challenge…impossible…In just the last six months, the country has emerged as the world’s fastest-growing humanitarian crisis…Sanctions, which are meant to be on the Taliban, have in fact chilled almost all economic activity. While those in power in Afghanistan have much to answer for, it is these policy choices of the international community that are the proximate cause of the crisis we face today.”

This episode's links can be found (for now) in the playlist.

February 12, 2022

Gaza Corner details the weaponizing of Anti-Semitism as a tool for censorship.

This episode's links can be found (for now) in the playlist.

February 5, 2022

The new Amnesty International report "Israel's Apartheid Against Palestinians: A Cruel System Of Domination And A Crime Against Humanity" is the subject of Gaza Corner. Discussion points include why this report is especially significant and why waving the anti-Semite card has lost its juice to manipulate minds.

This episode's links can be found (for now) in the playlist.

January 29, 2022

The one year anniversary of Biden’s presidency has passed without much to celebrate. Biden made lots of promises on the campaign trail on his way to being elected. Gaza Corner delves into his promises regarding Palestine and Israel. Outside of restoring aid to Palestinians that Trump cut, none of Biden's promises have been fulfilled. The reality is the plight of Palestinians has significantly worsened since Biden took office.

This episode's links can be found (for now) in the playlist.

January 22, 2022

With global headlines preoccupied with Russia’s possible imminent invasion of Ukraine due to NATO’s flirtation, the mainstream media ignored the 4th anniversary of NATO country Turkey’s invasion and occupation of a sovereign state. Russia green lighted the assault of Kurdish populated Afrin in northern Syria while the U.S. did little to stop it. Less than two years later, Trump gave the thumbs up for Turkey’s next invasion and occupation further to the east in Syria. Both invasions struck at the indigenous heartland of the Kurds known as Rojava, aka The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria. Gaza Corner documents how Afrin has become Turkified after four years of ongoing illegal occupation. The segment details the ethnic cleansing of Kurds and brutal treatment of women including femicide.

This episode's links can be found (for now) in the playlist.

January 15, 2022

This Gaza Corner is about two Palestinians artists who are tied to the musical history of the First Intifada. Mo’min Swaitat is a London-based Palestinian Bedouin actor, filmmaker, music producer, DJ and archivist who discovered a shuttered music shop during COVD lockdown in Jenin, a city in the West Bank. Mo’min was allowed to search the store’s vast music archive and discovered a treasure. He came across the long forgotten music that enlivened Palestinian life when the First Intifada broke out in the late 1980’s. During the First Intifada songs became spaces for the articulation of the uprising. One of Mo’min’s special finds was “The Intifada Album” by Riad Awwad. After receiving an arts grant, Mo’min formed the Mojazz Project, which is an archive of the vintage Palestinian and Arab vinyl and cassettes he discovered.

Suhail Khoury is the Director of the Edward Said Conservatory of Music. In 1988 during the First Intifada he became the first Palestinian to be imprisoned by Israel for composing music. Gaza Corner excerpts Dore Stein’s 2015 interview with Suhail Khoury who retells the story including the physical and mental torture he suffered.

This episode's links can be found (for now) in the playlist.

January 8, 2022

This year the war in Syria has passed its ten-year anniversary. The war has slowed down but the suffering has not. The war is at a stage that is best described as a violent protracted stalemate.

One of the consequences of the war is extreme poverty. Coupled with instability, this toxic combination greatly contributes to children’s vulnerability to join extremist groups such as the Islamic State. For Syrian families struggling to survive, the benefits that armed groups offer child soldiers can be life-saving. The Islamic State in Syria is regrouping and sleeper cell attacks are on the rise.

This Gaza Corner ends with a ray of sunshine. Syrian Kurdish emigres in Germany raised money and launched an internet technology company called Nestech that employs young Syrians. The employees work from home and despite obvious challenges earn an excellent income.


Poverty 'biggest threat,' driving Syrians into arms of IS; Internet Tech Company NESTECH is a Ray of Light

Interview with Mazlum Kobane, commander in chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces

Dore note: Excellent primer on situation in Rojava, Kurdish controlled autonomous region in NE Syria


Islamic State ramps up activities in eastern Syria

Child Soldiers in Syria

Why Young Syrians Choose To Fight: Vulnerability and resilience to recruitment by violent extremist groups in Syria

January 1, 2022

Gaza Corner does a deep dive into Archbishop Desmond Tutu's championing for Palestininan rights. The segment details how the mainstream media self-censored its coverage of Tutu's passing by omitting or minimizing Tutu's strong advocacy of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement. Desmond Tutu: “I know first-hand that Israel has created an apartheid reality within its borders and through its occupation. The parallels to my own beloved South Africa are painfully stark indeed."

”Nelson Mandela famously said that South Africans would not feel free until Palestinians were free. He might have added that the liberation of Palestine will liberate Israel, too."


Tutu Obits Underplay His Advocacy for Palestine
note: published subsequent to Gaza Corner

Tutu’s courage on Israeli apartheid is played down in obits in NYT, Washington Post and NPR

Desmond Tutu: This Is My Plea to the People of Israel

Dore note: Definitive opinion piece written by Desmond Tutu.


Statement by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Leader of Human Rights Council fact-finding mission into events of Beit Hanoun massacre on 11/8/06
Desmond Tutu Video (14:03)
Archbishop Desmond Tutu's passionate address at a 2014 rally for Palestine in Cape Town - the protest march, attended by over 250 000 people, was the largest that South Africa witnessed (on any issue) since the dawn of democracy.

Desmond Tutu Speaks on Apartheid, Palestine

Statement by Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu on U.S. Efforts to Curb Freedom of Speech

Interview: Desmond Tutu on gay rights, the Middle East and Pope Francis

When Desmond Tutu stood up for the rights of Palestinians, he could not be ignored

Desmond Tutu stood for Palestinians and many others. We should honor his global struggle for justice.

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2008-2011 Note: This feature was renamed Gaza Corner from 'News of the Day' on 5/30/10 after the Gaza Freedom Flotilla was attacked by Israel resulting in 10 deaths. The focus changed to Palestine/Israel and the Middle East.