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Justice, the American way January 2009 – Is there any chance that George W Bush will ever face
indictment for his alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity? Read on Profits of war January 2009 – The
economic rewards of peace are supposed to lure Israelis and Palestinians away
from conflict. But what if war is its own reward? Read on People of the border Osama Diab January 2009 – Rafah, a city divided between Shock and awe on a shoestring January 2009 – An Iraqi journalist expressed his contempt for
President Bush in a manner familiar in the Arab world: by throwing his shoes.
Read on Ramadan for drinkers November 2008 – With
booze in short supply, the month of fasting can be a thirsty wait for some
Muslims. Read on The God veto November 2008 – Belief in
the sacredness of the holy land has long bedevilled the quest for peace. It’s
time to challenge the ‘God veto’. Read on Forecast: dry, becoming drier November 2008 – There’s
more than enough fresh water in the world to sate our thirst. The problem is
getting it to where it is desperately needed. Read on
What’s the difference between Obama and an Arab? November 2008 – John
McCain has furnished compelling proof that Barack Obama is not an Arab: the Democrat is a family man. Read on The September 2008 – Does Obama’s choice of running mate mean he’s shaping up to be
just another establishment candidate for the White House? Read on An untenable state of
affairs September 2008 – With neither a two-state or bi-national solution
imminent, Palestinians and their Israeli allies should attend to civil
rights. Read
on Bridging
the road to Damascus September 2008 –
Israeli voters should give their next leader a clear mandate to negotiate an
equitable peace with Wanted:
a gesture from Syria September 2008 – A
return to the negotiating table is encouraging, but Disarming the bomb in the
basement September 2008 – The human cost of cluster
bombs Katleen Maes September 2008 –
Cluster bombs continue to hurt people and their livelihoods years after they
were dropped. Read on The ICC and Tom Kenis
September 2008 – The
ICC indictment of Hawks, doves and lame ducks August
2008 – In the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the standoff between hawks and
doves has long rendered the quest for peace a lame duck. Read on Weapons of mass distrust August
2008 – Will the conciliatory tones coming out of Washington and Tehran be
enough to bring the Iran nuclear standoff to an end or do we need more to
defuse the region’s toxic weapons of mass distrust? Read on Imagine... if the kids took over August 2008
– The future would look very different if we put the peace process in the
hands of Palestinian and Israeli children. Read on Mo-town record August
2008 – Twenty thousand Muhammads in one place is
not a world record, it is an everyday reality. Read on Paved with good inventions July 2008
– The bumpy road to innovation in the Arab world is paved with good
inventions which never see the light of day. Read on Enemy of the status quo July 2008
– At a time when the only Arabs and Israelis who met were soldiers and spies,
an intrepid Egyptian woman crossed enemy lines. Read on The clash inside July 2008
– The stubbornly persistent ‘clash of civilisations’ theory ignores the
abundant clashes within ‘civilisations’ and the alliances that traverse them. Read on Obama’s eastern promise July 2008
– Barack Obama’s first
name derives from the Arabic for ‘blessing’, but if he becomes president will
he be a boon or a curse for the The Mosaic Arabs June 2008
– Not so long ago many prominent Jewish thinkers believed in a natural
affinity between Judaism and Islam. Read on Unfinished peace overtures June 2008
– When an Egyptian police orchestra got hopelessly lost in 2048: a peace odyssey May 2008 –
The man behind the prophet April
2008 – Muhammad was one of the most influential figures in human history. But
who was the man behind the icon? Read on In search of Arab authors April
2008 – The Arab world is in desperate need of more novelists in the English
language to bring home the realities of the region through fiction. Read on Moroccan women in 3-D April
2008 – My recent visit to Diversity, not adversity March
2008 – Turks in Critical mess March 2008
– Wisdom, not intelligence February
2008 – Glimmers of hope February
2008 – Palestinian and Israeli peace activists have joined forces to demand
the lifting of the A widening gulf November
2007 – The controversial visit to Perils of the moral high
ground November
2007 – The US Congress’s cynical manipulation of the Armenian genocide is
hypocritical and a slur on the memories of those who perished. Read on The roots of the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict November
2007 – This year’s debate will consider the question of whether Israeli
intransigence is at the root of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Read on Empowering the average Mo November
2007 – In the traditional Arab mindset, men who do not fit the conventional
ideal of manhood are regarded as inferior. Read on Femme caramel October
2007 – A film set in a Middle Eastern cult heroes October
2007 – With political disillusionment at an all-time high, a certain brand of
hardline Middle Eastern leader is being elevated to
the status of cult hero. Read on Ahmadinejad’s image problem October
2007 – Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s
unpolished The
art of peace (2) September 2007 – Last
week, I invited Arabs to come out of their trenches and explore the
no-man’s-land of the Arab-Israeli conflict. Now it’s the turn of the
Israelis. Read on The
art of peace September
2007 – It is time for Arabs to come out of their trenches and explore the
no-man's-land of the Arab-Israeli conflict. Read on Castles
made of sand September 2007 – The
spirit of the 1960s touched the Arab world too, but rapidly faded away. Read on September 2007 – There
is no military solution for the Faith and punishment August 2007 – In Islam,
apostasy and faithlessness are sins, but they are not worldly crimes. Those
who claim otherwise are making a mistake. Read on A song for the deaf August 2007 – I’m sick
of hearing the same old tune about how Muslims are silent in their
condemnation of terrorism. Time for a song. Read on A
Christian jihad? August 2007 – Many in the West fear the
threat posed by political Islam. But there is a more ominous menace closer to
home. Read
on Uri
Avnery v Khaled Diab – One
state or two? July 2007 – Could a ‘one-state’ solution end the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict? Read on
The other right of
return
July 2007
– Palestinians have not been the Sex and the medina
July 2007 – The time is ripe for a Middle Eastern sexual revolution and
there are signs that a quiet one is in progress. But will young Arabs openly
stand up for their right to get laid? Read on
The
Muslim faithless July 2007
– Ridiculing and questioning Islam, Muhammad, the Qur’an
and religion in general is an ancient tradition in Muslim countries. Read on A
war on error June 2007
– It is time to dispel the myths surrounding Muslims – namely, that we are
all terrorist anti-feminist teetotallers. Read on A
war on error (2) June 2007
– It is time to dispel the myths that conservative Muslims often propagate
about 'the west'. Read on Small
bombs, big trouble Katleen
Maes June 2007
– There are renewed hopes of an international treaty on cluster munitions –
although the only way forward is to ban them. Read on Without a road map – Travels in
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photo essay by Katleen Maes |
A
letter to the Israeli premier
December
2006 – Tom Kenis urges the Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to soften his
government’s toughening policy towards ‘family unification’ in the
Palestinian territories. Read on
Madrid
II: towards a civil peace in the Middle East
November 2006 – Prompted by the dire situation in Gaza ,
Spain , France and Italy
have floated an unexpected Middle East peace
drive. This initiative will almost certainly join other similar aborted road
maps and peace plans slowly decaying in the graveyard of international
diplomacy. What the EU needs to do is to abandon the deadlocked political
level and organise a high-profile Madrid II conference targeted at civil
society to set in motion a ‘people’s peace process’. Read on
How
I learned to start worrying and hate the bomb
November 2006 – With North Korea’s recent nuclear test and Iran’s
suspected nuclear designs, Khaled Diab explains why he learned to start worrying and hate
the bomb and suggests how the proliferation of nuclear weapons can best be
arrested – and reversed. Read on
Pitch
gender battles in Iran
October 2006 – Jafar Panahi’s Offside is a football film that is about almost everything but the beautiful game. It is onside and on target when it comes to providing a farcical and perceptive insight into the position of women in contemporary Iranian society. Read on
Het stadium is geen plaats
voor vrouwen!
‘Offside’ van de regisseur Jafar Panahi is een voetbalfilm
die bijna alle onderwerpen behandelt behalve het spel. De film biedt een
lachwekkend en diepgaand inzicht, een schot op doel, in de positie van de
vrouw in de hedendaagse Iraanse samenleving. Lees meer
Give
‘salom’ a chance
September 2006 – The best lessons to draw from
Talking settlements
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By Katleen Maes After decades of war and confrontation and
years of trying to reach a lasting peace, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has
become a very complex issue to solve and one in which it is virtually
impossible to deal with each of the problems separately. Nevertheless,
windows of opportunity to ease the tension can be found. This study
explores how the partial resolution of certain complex issues can provide
the momentum for a peaceful settlement of the conflict. Read on |
Salom now!
Reaching out for a people’s peace in the
Middle East
Peace is so
important to Arabs and Israelis that they use it to greet friends and
strangers a like – ‘salam’/’shalom’, they say.
Despite this, the
Using a carrot and stick for
peace
September
2006 – Given the fragile situation in
Salom now!
Mobilising the untapped power of Arab and
Israeli peaceniks
August
2006 – Arabs and Israelis have a common way of greeting people and it is to
wish them ‘peace’. As advocates of violent solutions chalk up another victory
in the Middle East and the international community fails the test again in
Part I – Silent world
Part II –
Peace begins
at home
Crisis in
From complete failure to
comprehensive solutions
July 2006 – Israel ’s
massive onslaught against Lebanon
– and before that Gaza
Intolerant cruelty
May 2006
– Five years after the tide turned against homosexuals in
Talking about ‘unspeakable love’
May 2006 – Brian Whitaker talks to Khaled Diab about his new book Unspeakable love. Read on and readers’
comments
Rivers of deceit
May 2006
– On 11 May 2001, 52 men were arrested in and around the Queen Boat floating
nightclub in Zamalek,
Cultural rainbows
May 2006 – As Hollywood does gay in a big way, the issue of
homosexuality in the Arab World is slowly coming out of the cultural and
media closet. Read on
Getting to the grassroots of the Middle East conflict
By Khaled Diab and Katleen Maes
April
2006 – The new Kadima party’s election victory in
Part I: Getting to the grassroots of the
Middle East conflict
Part II: The end of the road for
unilateralism?
The EU’s new Palestine
February 2006
– It may be better for the EU to provide more carrots and fewer sticks for Hamas, writes Khaled Diab. Read on
Graven images and poor reflections
February
2006 – It is perplexing that a few crude cartoons can spark an international
crisis overshadowing war, political oppression and economic and social
injustice. It has
hurt the image of Muslims and reflects poorly on their tolerance, while
unmasking the uglier face of western prejudice. Read on and readers’
comments
Abuse freedoms and we all lose
February 2006 – It is not freedom of expression that is under threat,
but the right to human dignity, argues Tom Kenis. Read on
Extraordinary renditions –
The playwright and the president
January 2006 – Jeff Sommers, Khaled Diab and Charles Woolfson
explore the dynamics between playwright and president as American foreign
policy stands in the dock. Read on
Extended analysis
Dressed to kill –
Under the cloak of Bush’s foreign policy
December 2005 – Jeff Sommers, Khaled Diab and Charles Woolfson expose what lies beneath the cloak of US
President George W Bush’s foreign policy. Read on
Conversion is not a crime
December 2005 – Muriel Degauque has the
dubious distinction of being the first white European female suicide bomber.
Shocking as this is, suggestions that we have reached a dangerous turning
point and that converts are brainwashed fanatics and their partners are
comic-book villains are unfair to the vast majority of converts and to
non-converts married to Muslims.. Read on
Walk first, then surf
December 2005 – Trying to level the cyberspace playing field
without addressing poverty, illiteracy, disease and unfair trade practices is
an exercise in futility. Read on
A revision of Salman
Rushdie’s vision –
We need ijtihadis,
not jihadis
September 2005 – Salman Rushdie’s
proposed Islamic Reformation touches on the urgent need for reform in most
Muslim societies. But his vision needs serious revision if it is to work. Read on
Turkey and Europe must
get ready to go back to the future
April
2005 –
Islam and Europe : Clash and mash
April 2005
– Khaled Diab and Katleen Maes examine the myths
driving anti-Islamic fervour in the EU. Read on
Time to rethink the EU’s
role in the Middle East
January
2005 – If Yasser Arafat’s death is to signify
anything more than the symbolic start of a new era, the European Union must
radically rethink its role as a mediator in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
to persuade the two peoples to work towards a new dawn. Read on
Commission wants closer EU-Israeli ties
January
2005 – The European Commission and the EU’s former
envoy to the Middle East have both come out in favour of enhancing economic
and political ties with
Remembering the Sultan of Style
December
2004 – Ziryab is a name you’re unlikely to have
come across. One sensible reason for this is that the guy died over a
millennium ago. But his single-handed moulding of modern tastes should earn
him a place in fashion’s Hall of Fame. Read on
Raising a new olive branch
December 2004 – Following the loss of Yasser Arafat – for decades, the international face of
the Palestinian struggle for statehood – it is time for the Palestinians to
rethink radically how they defend their cause. Read on
Taking up peace, putting down arms
September 2004 – Sistani
won his peaceful protest in Najaf. But Gandhian methods in the
Gaza
August 2004 – The latest Egyptian diplomatic
initiative to revive the peace process is sustained by a belief that the art
of the possible will pave the way for the wishful. However, an Egyptian
presence in the Gaza Strip will not expedite peace and may have dire
long-term consequences. Read on
Libya
May 2004
– Spectacular diplomatic coups have been flying out of
Why set menus for
By Katleen Maes
May 2004
– “Why all the fuss?” was the question recently asked on the pages of the
Globe and Mail, a liberal Canadian daily, regarding US President George
Bush’s support for Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s latest unilateral
blow to prospects for peace in the Middle East. Read
on
Behind the gates of hell
April
2004 – The mayhem and anarchy gripping
Arab world and
African nations both struggle for EU-style unity
March 2004
– As the European Union prepares to expand eastwards, it success in achieving
security and prosperity through economic integration has become an example
for the rest of the world, yet Arabs and Africans are finding it tough to
forge their own regional blocs. Read on
Alternative peace
plan for
Katleen
Maes and Khaled Diab
February 2004 – THE
Peace and its
alternatives
Katleen Maes and Khaled Diab
February 2004 – As prominent European politicians
come out in favour of an alternative
A state of
conscience
Khaled Diab and Katleen Maes
November
2003 – Building a single homeland for Israelis and Palestinians may be the
only viable solution to the decades-old conflict in the long-term. Read on
Joy and fury at Belgium
February 2003 – As a global army of millions of peace
protesters attempts to stop the march towards a US-led war in
Murder prompts riots
December
2002 – Antwerp Arab leader arrested after unrest following “racist” killing. Read on
Arab pride on the streets of Antwerp
November
2002 – An Arab community group has organised patrols on
Arab panthers and Flemish lions
November
2002 – A new wave of Arab activism is taking hold in
EU sticks with Middle East
road map amid uncertainty
November
2002 – The collapse of Israel’s ‘national unity’ government, following the
exit of the Labour Party, has sparked fears in EU corridors that a hardening
of Israeli politics could further endanger the prospects for a peaceful
resolution of the two-year-old bloody conflict with the Palestinians. Read on
€500
million Euro-Med project 'does not go far enough'
October 2002 – A €500
million-per-year initiative to boost development in the EU’s
12 Mediterranean partner countries has been welcomed, but experts fear it
does not go far enough to prepare the Union ’s
volatile southern flank to become a free trade area by 2010. Read on
The
price of war
October 2002 – Whether
or not Iraq, after more than a decade of ‘containment’ and sanctions, poses a
threat to the United States and its allies, any military action would most
likely have serious economic and political ramifications for Europe. Read on
Leaps of faith
July 2002 – My arm hung
sheepishly in mid-air and my confident smile faltered momentarily when Rita Walravens politely declined to shake my hand. Despite the
fleeting sense of awkwardness and my hasty withdrawal of the offending limb,
I comforted myself that I had not irreparably put my foot in it and that she
bore me no ill feelings. Read on
Sharon court ruling clears the way for possible Brussels
June 2002 – A war crimes
case against Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon alleging his complicity in
the 1982 massacre of around 1,000 Palestinians in Beirut
Peace activists to join forces
June 2002 – Israeli and Palestinian civil society should not count on
their deadlocked politicians to deliver peace and must join forces to
mobilise grassroots support for a peaceful resolution to the violent conflict
in the Middle East, peace activists from both sides agreed at a meeting in Brussels
Israel
May 2002 – Israel may seek the extradition of 13
Palestinian militants exiled to Europe in an
EU-brokered deal once their initial year-long period of asylum expires,
according to high-level Israeli diplomatic sources. Read
on
Palestinian militant’s whereabouts a secret
May 2002 – The whereabouts of an exiled Palestinian, Khalil Mohammed Abdullah Nawareh,
who arrived in Belgium
Barcelona limps on despite Middle East crisis
April
2002 – Eleventh-hour diplomacy salvaged this week’s gathering in Valencia of
European and Mediterranean foreign ministers, seeking to ensure that economic
and political cooperation is not derailed by the
Plea for more help in Middle
East
April
2002 – Israeli human rights groups have voiced grave concerns to the European
Union over the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation in the
Pro-Palestinian groups take demonstration to streets
of Brussels
April
2002 – Thousands of protesters descended upon
The gains and pains of free trade
April 2002 – The successful launch of the physical Euro has fleshed out
Europe ’s aspirations for economic
integration and many hope it will pave the road towards political
integration. Meanwhile an increasingly divided Middle East
slips a notch closer to war as one “bloodiest week” in the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict replaces another. Read on
EU and Syria
March 2002 – A dispute over trade barriers has resulted in this week’s
scheduled talks on the association pact between the European Union and Syria
EU needs ‘resolute’ Middle East
stance
March 2002 – Europe must have a clear position on the Middle East and
use its political and economic clout to help the region out of its current
impasse as Israeli-Palestinian violence escalates, say academic experts from
Europe and the United
States
Attack the machinery, not the machinations
March 2002 – MEPs and some of the UK ’s
top stars have petitioned Egypt Egypt
Reinventing the Arab media
March
2002 – Few would have expected tiny
Pilgrims’ progress
February
2002 – As Muslims the world over head for
Sporting an Afro
December
2001 – If I were to let my hair grow, I’d be sporting quite a respectable
Afro within a matter of months. Not so my wallet, however. While
Libyan oil fails to grease the wheels of
normalisation with the US
August
2001 – The United States is having trouble whipping up support amongst even
its allies for its unilateral sanctions against
Beware the Arab?
April
2000 – Khaled Diab looks
at the Arab stereotypes that are terrorising people’s common sense. Read on
ã2008 – Khaled Diab.
Unless otherwise stated, all the content on this website is the copyright of Khaled Diab.