Israel, Vatican: A Magdalene meeting point – Asia Times
July 13th, 2010
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/LG14Ak03.html
Synagogue dig at Magdala. (Photo: Simon Roughneen)
TIBERIAS – The breeze cooling the furnace-like lakeshore funnels down between hills behind, redolent of history like so much else in the Holy Land. One, an extinct volcano popularised as the ‘Horns of Hattin’, marks the site where Saladin defeated a Crusader army in 1187. Closer again is the cliff-face where over a thousand years before, Jews are said to have committed mass suicide rather than be taken captive by the Romans in 67 AD, 3 years before the destruction of Jerusalem and a better-known mass suicide at the Masada.
Downhill is the reed-laden lakeshore along the Sea of Galilee, where Jesus Christ walked. He may well even have preached in a startling new discovery 200m from the water’s edge at Magdala, thought to be the home-place of Mary Magdalene, 5km from Tiberias and around the same from Capernaum. A synagogue dating to the first century AD, possibly destroyed during the same Jewish revolt, has been discovered during excavations for the construction of a new Catholic pilgrimage center.
Like many other locations in the country, Magdala is precious to more than one religion. An image of a seven-branched menorah (a type of candelabra) found at the synagogue dig is apparently a replica of the the iconic menorah held at the Second Temple, nowadays reproduced on Israel’s coat of arms. The temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD , marking the start of 2000 years of Jewish dispersal prior to the formation of Israel in 1948. (more…)
An unbreakable bond? – Asia Times
June 28th, 2010
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/LF29Ak02.html
T-shirt for sale in Jerusalem. (Photo: Simon Roughneen)
JERUSALEM – In ‘The Great Divorce’ C.S. Lewis attempted to allegorise about a reality which he admitted he could not know, but tentatively hoped to suggest. The US-Israeli relationship, to most, seems like an unbreakable bond, and any potential divorce might be regarded as unimaginable.
But when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets US President Barack Obama on July 6, they will discuss a relationship that is on the rocks, despite an annual US$2billion in aid and – in keeping with the traditional parameters of the relationship – Obama’s repeated commitment to Israel’s security. Stirring things up in advance, Israel’s Ambassador to the US Michael Oren spent Sunday and Monday denying media reports that he told Israeli diplomats that a “tectonic rift” was emerging between the two countries.
The summit will be a reprise of a stillborn meeting originally scheduled for late May, which Netanyahu cancelled after nine Turks were killed by Israeli commandoes onboard one of the six boats attempting to breach the blockade on the Hamas-run Gaza Strip. In the aftermath, whatever Obama’s private thoughts, he refused to join the chorus condemning Israel. But American policymakers felt themselves to be caught between a rock and a hard place, and beyond this incident, there are divergent worldviews colouring thinking in both administrations. (more…)
Both sides of the wall – ISN
June 24th, 2010
http://www.isn.ethz.ch/isn/Current-Affairs/Security-Watch/Detail/?lng=en&id=117949
Simon Roughneen in Ramallah – It might be unwitting irony, but the coffee-shop overlooking central Ramallah tips its hat to an American consumer icon, in what might otherwise be deemed an outpost of anti-Americanism.
Inside Stars and Bucks, Ramallah. (Photo: Simon Roughneen)
Stars and Bucks cafe in downtown Ramallah is branded with same colour scheme as the global chain, simultaneously a hue pretty-close to Islamic green. Hummus and labaneh are on the menu should the customer want a more “authentic” experience than just downing a Middle East macchiato. Inside a mixture of western and Arabic-dressed women kept to their own tables, appearing inscrutable behind outsized sunglasses. Some men lounged on sofas, puffing on shishas while watching the Portugal-North Korea World Cup mismatch.
Outside traffic crawled through the streets and pedestrians meandered in the 34 degree heat. Downhill from Ramallah’s centre-point at al-Manara square and the faux-iconic coffee shop, a lush fruit and vegetable market is packed high with greens and reds, browns and yellows, while shoppers browsed melons, tomatoes, onions. “You need to ask if you want to take photos here”, said Ashraf, leaning out over his stall to make himself heard over the din of hagglers, before happily posing behind his produce.
Since 2008, the Palestinian Authority has implemented some institutional reforms and economic development, supported by more than US$3 billion in foreign donor assistance. (more…)
Israel in the dock — but what do Israelis think? – Crikey
June 22nd, 2010
http://www.crikey.com.au/2010/06/22/israel-in-the-dock-but-what-do-israelis-think/
In the distance a Jewish settlement, as pictured from inside Bethlehem in the West Bank. (Photo: Simon Roughneen)
Simon Roughneen in Tel-Aviv – Israel has taken a hammering once more in much of the world’s media after the recent flotilla incident and due to the Gaza blockade. Despite the country’s uncompromising “siege mentality” image, a few days in Tel-Aviv and Jerusalem suggests that many people are sensitive to what the world thinks. Gali Ginat is a reporter for Maariv newspaper, the second-biggest seller in Israel. She lamented that “it seems that the rest of the world hates us now”. And while the Government and the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) have mounted a vociferous defence of the country’s actions in recent weeks, many Israelis are not fully-convinced.
I spoke with Gal Lin at the Media in Conflict seminar organised by the IDC Herzliya, where he is a student. He said that “it’s almost a consensus in Israel that the execution of the operation to stop the flotilla was poor”. During the seminar IDF spokeswoman Lt Col Avital Liebovich fielded tough questions from Israeli journalists who thought the operation was a mess, and from Turkish reporters who questioned the official account of events.
After the flotilla incident and a Red Cross statement that the blockade contravenes international law as it involves collective punishment of one million Palestinians living inside Gaza, Israel announced that it would relax some of the blockade’s provisions. Most Israelis I asked about this said that they are happy for anything that could not be used against Israel by Hamas to be let through, as the Red Cross and others say that humanitarian conditions inside Gaza are “dire”. (more…)
Tensions remain despite pledge to ease Gaza blockade – Sunday Business Post/RTÉ World Report
June 20th, 2010
http://www.thepost.ie/news/world/coloniser-israel-relaxes-gaza-blockade-49972.html
http://www.rte.ie/news/2010/0620/worldreport.html
SIMON ROUGHNEEN IN JERUSALEM – Israel’s Government last week agreed to relax its 4-year long blockade on the
Israelis call it a security fence, Palestinians call it a segregation wall. Pictured near Rachel's Tomb close to Bethlehem. (Photo: Simon Roughneen)
Gaza Strip, but the fallout from the recent flotilla incident lingers. With Israeli-US relations somewhat-frayed of late, US President Barack Obama called the move “ a step in the right direction”. Israel has come under intense international criticism for the deaths of nine Turks onboard the Mavi Marmara, one of six boats that tried to breach the naval blockade on May 31 last. Former Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble is one of two foreign observers to a committee set up to look into the clash, but described as a diversion by critics such as Turkey who want an international investigation.
Israel maintains that its soldiers were set upon first by members of a controversial Turkish group known in English acronym form as the IHH. Israeli Defence Force (IDF) spokeswoman Lt Col Avital Liebovich told a press conference that video evidence proves that the fourth Israeli soldier to land on the boat was the first to open fire on the IHH contingent, after three colleagues were already attacked with iron bars.
Israel has been accused of heavy-handedness in dealing with the ship and many Israelis I spoke with this week criticised the planning and methods used to deal with the flotilla. Alon Pinkas recently served as Israeli Consul-General to the US. Speaking at the closing of the “Media in Conflicts Seminar” in Tel-Aviv on Friday, he said that “Israel has never been in a worse place in world opinion”, but added that some of this opprobrium comes from a misperception among liberal opinion in the west that “Israel is a coloniser” akin to the French and British empires. (more…)
Big task for Abu Dhabi bishop – RTÉ World Report
January 10th, 2010
http://www.rte.ie/news/2010/0110/worldreport.html
ABU DHABI – When Irish people think of a diocese, they likely imagine a county-sized region with townland parishes
Inside the St Joseph Cathedral ground, Abu Dhabi. (Photo: Simon Roughneen)
within.
Not so for Bishop Paul Hinder. He is the Pope’s representative in the heartland of Islam, in charge of a diocese encompassing six Arab countries – Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Oman, Yemen and Saudi Arabia.
I caught up with him at St Josephs Cathedral in the oil-wealthy city of Abu Dhabi, part of the Emirates. That same day, neighbouring Dubai launched the world’s tallest building, the 800 meter high Burj Khalifa, with the building effectively paid-for by Abu Dhabi, which is footing Dubai’s bills after spectacular property bust last year.
Bishop Hinder is more concerned about the estimated 2 million Catholics across his vast diocese. The majority are Filipino migrant workers, with an estimated 1 million or more in Saudi Arabia, the birthplace of Islam and site of its holiest places. Here open Christian worship is not permitted, and priests cannot serve.
Workers also come from countries such as Ethiopia and India, and many suffer at the hands of unscrupulous agents and employers. Often they come to the region on the promise of a good job and good conditions, but on arrival their passport is taken by their new employer, or the agent who brought them from home, and they are forced to work long, almost incessant hours, with no recourse to due process. (more…)
Iraqi Christians: Round trip to Death Street – ISN
August 20th, 2008
http://www.isn.ethz.ch/news/sw/details.cfm?id=19329
Car bomb attack on Our Lady of Fatima Church, n.Iraq (asianews.it)
Iraqi Christian refugees flee the horror of sectarian violence at home to struggle with life in Lebanon.
By Simon Roughneen in Beirut for ISN Security Watch
“My friend was stopped at a checkpoint on the road to Irbil from Baghdad. The people in the car had to show their ID cards to the masked men.
“They could see she was Christian from her name. They dragged her from the car, pushed her to her knees and put a gun to her head.
“They told her to convert to Islam, or die. She refused and started praying out loud. But they did not kill her, not straight away. They raped her and then she was shot in the head.”
Pascale (her name and the names of her family members have been changed to protect their identity) has recounted this tale too many times to cry any more. However this story, as elemental as it is heart-rending, is not unique among the estimated 2 million Iraqi refugees who have fled their country since 2003. (more…)
Petraeus’ visit focuses on military assistance – The Washington Times
August 14th, 2008
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/aug/14/petraeus-visit-focuses-on-military-assistance/
BEIRUT — Gearing up to take over the U.S. Central Command for the Middle East in September, Gen. David H. Petraeus last week paid a surprise visit to Beirut to meet Lebanese President Michel Suleiman and Prime Minister Fuad Siniora.
The U.S. Embassy in Lebanon said the meetings “focused on the United States´ assistance to the Lebanese Armed Forces, so it can maintain peace and stability, and safeguard the Lebanese people.” (more…)
Sectarian tensions heat up in Lebanon – The Washington Times
August 4th, 2008
Downtown Beirut, Aug 2008 (Simon Roughneen)
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/aug/04/sectarian-tensions-heat-up-in-lebanon/
Outside forces fuel instability
BEIRUT | The banner draped across one of downtown Beirut’s plush ice-cream parlors reads “taste the reconciliation.”
The specialty of the house is a multiflavored melange that includes all the colors of the parties of Lebanon’s political spectrum, now ostensibly united after three years of discord.
But sweet sloganeering aside, a political chill is in the air, as uncomfortable as Beirut’s summer heat. Tensions between Sunni and Shi’ite Muslims are rising, and Syria is reasserting its political clout three years after it was forced to withdraw its troops from Lebanon in the aftermath of the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
Renewed fighting last week in the northern city of Tripoli, a Sunni-dominated region, underlined the precariousness of the peace agreement reached in Qatar in May between the Hezbollah-led opposition backed by Syria and Iran and the Western-supported March 14 movement, named for the start of the Cedar Revolution triggered by the Hariri assassination in February 2005.
(more…)
Fighting in Tripoli, Syrian hands – World Politics Review
August 4th, 2008
http://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/article.aspx?id=2524
Aftermath of fighting in Tripoli, Aug08. (Simon Roughneen)
TRIPOLI, Lebanon — On the road into Tripoli from the south, Lebanon’s condo- and casino-dotted coastline rises sharply inland to hills crowded with apartments, churches and mosques. Cable cars running to the high ground provide spectacular views of the turquoise Mediterranean to the west, and of Beirut to the south.
Further on, as traffic enters Tripoli, a reassuring sign overhead reads: “Relax, you are in Al-Mina, the city of waves and horizon.”
Al-Mina is the name for the section of the city surrounding the pristine harbor, where tourists can take boat trips to islands in the Mediterranean, under the shadow of the Citadel of Raymond de Saint-Gilles, the 1,000-year-old former Crusader stronghold.On the weekend of July 27-27, the siren call of this would-be paradise was drowned out by barrages of gunfire and explosions. Sunni and Alawite militias took to the streets to fight and, with the U.S.-backed Lebanese Army slow to intervene, by July 29 bombed-out buildings and bullet-pocked walls were visible on either side of the city’s Sunni-Alawite divide.
(more…)
