Europe, wake up and smell the coffee

“It is high time to stop waiting for Washington, Moscow, Budapest or Jerusalem. It is time to stand up for human rights, to demand nothing short of an end to the occupation, and to spell out how European leadership will effectively reject the unacceptable reality of the past 50 years. Backed by an almost global consensus reiterated in last year’s UN Security Council resolution 2334, in solidarity with Palestinians and likeminded Israelis, and together with international actors near and far – this is a task to be realized by a genuine coalition committed to non-violence, human rights, and justice. Europe, wake up.”

Netanyahu’s Israel openly mocks the values that Europe claims to hold dear. When will European leaders stand up and reject the unacceptable reality of the past 50 years?

By Hagai El-Ad

Israeli soldiers arrest a Palestinian youth during a protest against Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, Hebron, West Bank, December 7, 2017. (Wisam Hashlamoun/Flash90)

Israeli soldiers arrest a Palestinian boy during protests against Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, Hebron, West Bank, December 7, 2017. (Wisam Hashlamoun/Flash90)

European foreign ministers attending Prime Minister Netanyahu’s breakfast in Brussels this Monday may find their thoughts wandering, as the guest of honor once again speaks of Iran, self-indulgent whining of “double standards,” and “the only democracy in the Middle East.” Some breakfasts are more difficult to swallow than others.

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And so, given a recent speech by a certain American president, the attending ministers’ thoughts may drift — perhaps to the occupied Palestinian territories. They may ask themselves some of the questions Israeli governments have consistently refused to address, such as: given how Israel’s grasp over the West Bank is being further cemented, why does Netanyahu’s government even bother to pay lip service to the “peace process?” And isn’t Israel’s policy of forced displacement of Palestinians from parts of the occupied territories a war crime? How many hours of electricity a day does Israel plan to ration for the 2 million Palestinians living at its doorstep in the Gaza Strip next week? And, embassy fanfare aside, what about the 370,000 Palestinians in East Jerusalem, living with no political rights since Israel’s annexation half a century ago?

Such unanswered questions may leave one’s mouth dry, and so the very same questions may percolate closer to home. For if Israel continues to cement its grasp all over the West Bank, why does Europe take seriously the occasional Israeli lip service to the “peace process?” And as Israel’s policy of forcibly displacing Palestinians from parts of the occupied territories is indeed a war crime, what is the EU’s effective counteraction? And for how much longer will the lie of “Israeli democracy,” alongside a 21st-century version of institutionalized oppression and dispossession, be accepted at Europe’s doorstep?

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Here’s a caffeine shot: it is all good and well to forever be disappointed by others while standing by and watching as unilateral moves become fait accompli. But it is Europe that has worn away its own credibility for years by repeatedly “expressing concern” over “the eroding possibility” of bringing an end to the occupation. How long can a position be eroded before it is wholly ground to dust courtesy of an Israeli bulldozer?

Yet thanks to the sheer bluntness of current American positions and Israeli actions, Europe can no longer pretend with any degree of credibility that the policy it is pursuing is one of supporting an American-led “peace process.” Such self-evident fiction undercuts Palestinians striving for freedom; Israeli human rights defenders striving for justice; and Europe’s values-driven vision towards a future based on the rule of law, human rights, and democracy.

The guest at Monday’s breakfast openly mocks these values, yet somehow here he is — white tablecloth, croissants, and dignitaries listening politely. In July 2017, in a meeting in Budapest with the prime ministers of Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland, and Slovakia, Netanyahu repeatedly called the EU “crazy” for being “the only association of countries in the world that conditions the relations with Israel… on political conditions.” Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán chimed in alongside, from his intra-EU perspective. Budapest and Jerusalem seem to be sharing more and more values these days.

As Israel’s number one trade partner, Europe has all the leverage it needs to inform Israeli voters that they cannot continue to have it both ways – enjoy perks justified by presumed shared democratic values, all while trampling those very values. Raising the stakes, Netanyahu is now pushing to further leverage the silencing effect of false accusations conflating the rejection of the perpetual occupation with “incitement to anti-Semitism”, while at the same time cashing in on internal European divisions. He thus aims to sideline even the modest, ineffective conditionality that has existed to date. And he, or his successor, will market such an achievement to Israeli voters as a sign that Israelis can in fact continue having it both ways.

By continuing to express “serious concern” instead of acting, Europe is deciding to allow others to lead the way, and de facto accepting the abundantly clear consequences. Trump’s America is far away from all this, both geographically and morally: it is shielded by an ocean, and outspoken in alignment with Putin, Duterte, Orbán – and Netanyahu. While America is distant, all this is unfolding in Europe’s immediate neighborhood. Out of sheer self-interest, can Europe withstand the consequences of abandoning the values underpinning its post-WW2 project?

It is high time to stop waiting for Washington, Moscow, Budapest or Jerusalem. It is time to stand up for human rights, to demand nothing short of an end to the occupation, and to spell out how European leadership will effectively reject the unacceptable reality of the past 50 years. Backed by an almost global consensus reiterated in last year’s UN Security Council resolution 2334, in solidarity with Palestinians and likeminded Israelis, and together with international actors near and far – this is a task to be realized by a genuine coalition committed to non-violence, human rights, and justice. Europe, wake up.

Hagai El- Ad is Executive Director of B’Tselem.

Christian Palestinians not welcoming Mike Pence threatening to receive him with shoe

Bethlehem/PNN/Monjed Jadou –

Christian Palestinians, along with Muslims held a protest in front of Nativity Church after Sunday prayers, To express there rejection of US President Donald Trump’s decision to consider Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

The protesters assur that  they would not meet his deputy Mike Pines because of his US administration pro-Israel  positions.

 Participants also raised Palestinian flags and slogans in English and Arabic denouncing American decision on jerusalem and warning against  US Vice President’s visit to the city.

George Zina who spoke on behalf Palestinian factions, Follow – up Christian Committee and Christian institutions in Bethlehem, stressed the popular position that rejects USA Vice President visit to the city, which carries the meaning of war and aggression.

Zina added that Trump decision to consider Jerusalem as the capital of Israel harms Palestinian Christians and Muslims he said also that US president have no right to forget religious and historical significance of the city and its indigenous inhabitants.

He assur that Trump decision is against international laws and conventions and will not change the Christian and Islamic reality of the city.

He called on international community to challenge this American arrogance and pressure Trump to withdraw his decision on Jerusalem adding that the Christian in the city is not welcoming US  Vice President Mike Pines visit.

Revolutionary Council member of Fatah movement, Mohammed Lahham, called for not receiving the US Vice President in Bethlehem.

He said: “We will receive US vice president with shoes and more.”

He added that Mike Pines unwelcome person and would be expelled from Bethlehem.

On Thursday, senior Fatah official Jibril Rajoub said that Pence was “unwelcome” in Palestine.

“In the name of Fatah I say that we will not welcome Trump’s deputy in the Palestinian Territories.

He asked to meet (Abbas) on the 19th of this month in Bethlehem, such a meeting will not take place,” Jibril Rajoub  stated.

On response for the reports that Palestinians not meeting and welcoming Mike Pence a spokesperson for Vice President said that by refusing to meet the latter during his upcoming trip to the region, the PA was turning its back on a dialogue about the future of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

It is unfortunate that the Palestinian Authority is walking away again from an opportunity to discuss the future of the region, the White House lamented in a statement released Sunday evening.

Pence is expected to visit the region later this month. He is set to travel to Israel and to the West Bank city of Bethlehem.

It was not clear what Rajoub’s remarks meant for the West Bank portion of Pence’s trip, but Politico reported Thursday that Pence “still intends to meet with Abbas and Palestinian leaders and thinks any decision to pull out of the meeting would be counterproductive,” a White House official was quoted as saying.

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‘Alabama deserves better’: Republican breaks with party to denounce Moore

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Richard Shelby, Alabama’s senior senator, refuses to fall in line with Trump and Republican National Committee’s endorsement: ‘I couldn’t vote for Moore’

Alabama’s senior senator has rebuked Roy Moore, the Republican candidate in Tuesday’s special election who has been accused of molestation and sexual misconduct by eight women, including several who were underage at the time.

In doing so, Richard Shelby refused to fall in line with Donald Trump, who was endorsed Moore, and the Republican National Committee (RNC).

Continue reading…

Netanyahu told Macron: Israel won’t tolerate Iranian missile factories at its border “Why not? They have to live with Israeli missile factories on its border?”

The prime minister warned the French president of Tehran’s entrenchment in neighboring countries, saying that everyone could benefit from closer security cooperation

Source: Netanyahu told Macron: Israel won’t tolerate Iranian missile factories at its border

‘Pak-origin sex gangs target white girls in UK’

Times of India is now publishing “fake news” produced by right-wing organizations posing as research organizations – http://ift.tt/2ycrgjR Gangs of Pakistani-origin men lure white girls with alcohol and drugs before raping and sexually abusing them as they fail to integrate within British society due to their Asian heritage, an anti-extremism think-tank has said in a new report.

Conference tweets: what’s your aim here?

There are many lists detailing what you need to consider when you use Twitter and Tweet stuff during a conference. Mine is below. But before we get to that, ask yourself this: what am I aiming to do here? It’s a pretty simple question but one that you may not have asked yourself before you decided to share your thoughts with the the world.

I’m assuming that you understand that when you Tweet, you’re not emailing friends or talking on the phone or just to a select few sciency mates; this is worldwide communication. 

But before that list, here’s a short pre-list checklist of things…

  • Why do I want to Tweet?
    Gonna stick to 20-year old in-jokes and name drops for your hardcore science krew or try to breakdown complexity, explain the science, descrrbe the talk, engage the public and advertise your expertise?
  • Who am I tweeting for?
    Think about your intended audience(s). It may be that you could just talk to those people at drinks or lunch?
  • Have I checked with the organizers that tweeting is okay and made sure there are no “don’t tweet this” signs on the slides? 
    Some people like to show their unsubmitted-data-for-future-publication to a room full of competitors but not to the internet. Or something.
  • Have I looked for Twitter handles beforehand
    Help out a presenter – use their handle and get them some more love (or maybe a collaboration or two)!
  • Make sure your Twitter account has a good photo (whether a headshot, lab photo or a graphic-it’s going to be your brand for a while) and a relevant bio
    Mention your role(s), passions and home city at least. 
  • Do I have the time to do this usefully and the skills to do it professionally?
    If you’re tweeting because “shiny new social media thing” or “My University says I have to communicate” but you don’t really know what that means then perhaps sit this one out. A lot of people aren’t that good at communicating clearly, quickly or outside their nerd herd. Perhaps just sit back and observe what’s going on around you in the conference twittersphere. Join in later maybe. Or maybe it’s just not for you.

Tweetings from meetings…

  1. Use the conference hashtag in every tweet
  2. Apart from live-tweeting the presentations, Tweet info about the host city, restaurants, public transport, good coffee spots, cheap eats etc.
    Be helpful and useful. Maybe even call for company for morning coffee or shout out to form a group around a topic and have dinner together
  3. Identify the speaker (always give credit) – name, Twitter handle (see above), talk subject in first Tweet
    After that just refer to last name or leave it out entirely if you are confident you can thread the tweets about each talk
  4. Add some detail about the talk in a follow-up tweet…or 2…or 3
    “Bob talking about Protein-X “….WHAT about Protein-X? What’s Bob saying? Has Bob made a good point? Is there some info to share? 
  5. If you want your Tweet to get noticed and to spread around, make sure it has context – why is work/research cool and what will it lead to? 
    Why should I care about your tweet or Bob’s work or Bob or you? These are mini-stories-don’t just flash up the cover, overview the book. This applies if tweeting just for you peers or for the wider world 
  6. Take and share slide photos – but good quality ones, not blurry or unzoomable nightmares 
    Presenters have put time and effort into conveying their data to their audience – you are now expanding their audience to dozens or thousands of extra seats, so do them justice
  7. Check the hashtag during the meeting – retweet other Tweets, comment on their comments
    Engage, follow, laugh, enjoy, expand and curate on your networks; it is social media after all
  8. Try and work in some humour
    Who doesn’t like a laugh? Be interesting and engaging.
  9. Try and find some data to quantify the reach and impact of your tweeting
    For the Masters. Symplur’s free monitoring of healthcare conference hashtags is a good start to see who is doing well. But look at the numbers of your retweets and engagements via Twitter analytics too. Talk about it. It’s an output and its quantifiable

Remember you are tweeting to the world as well as to scientists. This is a great opportunity to test out your communication skills and to inform those who will ultimately benefit from (and often fund) your contribution to the history of science – the public.

Having a Twitter account is one thing. Using it to science is entirely another.