- October 25, 2026
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Palestine Entangled: The Politics of Money
By Ramzy Baroud In Malaysia, a small group of community activists are busy at work developing projects that benefit most vulnerable members of Palestinian society in Gaza. Working under the umbrella of Viva Palestina Malaysia (VPM), the group shows solidarity through empowerment projects: interest free loans for micro projects, providing employment for women, supplying thousands […]
Manipulating History: The Different Faces of ‘Popular Resistance’ in Palestine
By Ramzy Baroud Apparently, ‘popular resistance’ has suddenly elevated to become a clash of visions or strategies between the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah and its rivals in Gaza, underscoring an existing and deepening rift between various factions and leaderships. Addressing a Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) meeting in Ramallah on July 2011, PA President Mahmoud Abbas […]
‘Popular Resistance’ in Palestine: Beyond Political Doublespeak
By Ramzy Baroud ‘Popular resistance’ is a progressively unifying force among Palestinian civil society groups, political factions and society at large. While the discussion regarding its political viability is somewhat new, Palestinian history of popular resistance is as old as the British, then Zionist colonial projects in Palestine which started nearly a century ago. It […]
Rhetorically Speaking: US Election and the Middle East
By Ramzy Baroud US elections are manifestly linked to the Middle East, at least rhetorically. In practical terms, however, US foreign policies in the region are compelled by the Middle East’s own dynamics and the US’s own political climate and economic woes, or ambitions. There is little historic evidence that US foreign policy in the […]
Much at Stake for Turkey: Border Violence Meant to Be a Defining Point
By Ramzy Baroud ‘We expected a greater Turkish response than this, but you know, every country has its own special affairs.’ Taken alone, the remarks by Bashir Hajjo, introduced by BBC Arabic TV last Thursday as the spokesperson of the Tawhid Brigade, are no cause for alarm, except, of course, when placed within context. By […]
No Election Fervor, But Much at Stake
By Ramzy Baroud Come November 6, American voters will decide whether to extend Obama’s mandate by four more years, or hand the former Massachusetts Governor the fate of a country that has long crossed the line of economic recession into territories uncharted since the Great Depression in 1929. Romney, the archetypal American elite with ample […]
The Empire Trapped: The US’ Unpromising Role in the New Middle East
By Ramzy Baroud Editors representing many Asian newspapers stood in a perfect line. They were nervous and giddy at the prospect of meeting Li Changchun, China’s powerful member of the Communist Party’s Politburo Standing Committee. Personally, the Great Hall of the People and the fortitude of Chinese society mesmerized me. Despite its challenges and repeated […]
A Defining Moment: Anti-Muslim Films, Cartoons and My Gaza Neighbor
By Ramzy Baroud A neighbor of mine, of many years ago from a Gaza refugee camp, was a sacrilegious person par excellence. Unemployed like most inhabitants of the camp, he was extremely poor. His family responsibilities were daunting, yet prolonged Israeli military curfews made it impossible for him to find a job, let alone venture […]
Egypt’s Gaza Policy: Time for Change is Now
By Ramzy Baroud If the new Egyptian leadership thinks it is possible to achieve lasting reconciliation between rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah within the current political climate, it is likely to be disappointed. In the case of Gaza, the government of Mohamed Morsi should in fact pursue sensible policies free from the protracted and […]
Charity Economics, Subservient Politics: Why Oslo Must Go
By Ramzy Baroud Recent demonstrations in protest of the rising cost of living have swept across the West Bank. While they are not indicative of a Palestinian version of the ‘Arab Spring’, they are still an important first step. A reasonable demand, however, cannot possibly be for Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to sack […]
Growing Isolation: Boycott of Israel Crosses to Governments’ Realm
By Ramzy Baroud Should Israel be worried? Very much so, for the age of total impunity is coming to an end. Critical voices of the Israeli occupation and mistreatment of Palestinians are rising – not only within civil society circles, but among world governments as well. The picture may seem grim if seen through the […]
Humanitarian Disaster at Sea – Little Girl with Green Jacket
By Ramzy Baroud Has the sea always been so cruel? The little girl was dressed in blue pants and a green jacket. Her hair was finely kempt in a ponytail, probably interwoven by her mother. Thursday was meant to be a special day for her, a fact that was highlighted by the carefully chosen details […]
Palestinian Refugees from Syria Lost and ‘Betrayed’
By Ramzy Baroud The official position of Arab nations is unambiguous: solidarity with Palestine is paramount. But facts on the ground point to a disturbingly different reality, one in which Palestinians are mistreated beyond any rational justification in various Arab countries. The worst-fated among them are stateless refugees, who have for decades been granted only […]
Fighting Apartheid in Palestine: South Africa’s Unfinished Business
By Ramzy Baroud The recent approval by South Africa’s cabinet to distinguish between products made in Israel and those made in illegal Jewish settlements in the West Bank was both politically sound and morally consistent with the country’s anti-Apartheid legacy. It was also a natural progression of South Africa’s policies, which have reflected impatience with […]
Arrigoni’s Murder Trial in Gaza: Answers Not Just a Verdict
By Ramzy Baroud There was once a young man from a very small Italian town called Bulciago who wished to change the world. As soon as he finished his exams, he began his quest. He travelled near and far, and when he arrived in Jerusalem in 2002, he knew he had found his calling. In […]
The Children Are Still Dying: Violence is Not News
By Ramzy Baroud Somewhere in my home I have a set of photo albums I rarely go near. I fear the flood of cruel memories that might be evoked from looking at the countless photos I took during a trip to Iraq. Many of the pictures are of children who developed rare forms of cancer […]
US Realists, Neocons and the War in Syria
By Ramzy Baroud In US political circles, the Syria conflict is increasingly being presented as a discussion pertaining to Israeli interests. This attitude is not substantially different from the way US politicians and media weighed in on the Egyptian January 25 revolution and its aftermath. Egypt mostly matters because of the US-brokered Camp David treaty […]
Shifting Truths in Sinai: Who Stands to Gain from Carnage?
By Ramzy Baroud Two Toyota Land Cruisers filled with about 15 well-built gunmen in ski masks and all-black outfits appear seemingly out of nowhere. Behind them is vast, open desert. They approach a group of soldiers huddled around a simple meal as they prepare to break their Ramadan fast. The gunmen open fire, leaving the […]
Neocons vs. the ‘Arab Spring’: Back on the Warpath
By Ramzy Baroud The neoconservatives are back with a vengeance. While popular uprisings in Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen and other Arab countries had briefly rendered them irrelevant in the region, Western intervention in Libya signaled a new opportunity. Now Syria promises to usher a full return of neoconservatives into the Middle East fray. “Washington must stop […]
At Stake in Mali: Refugees at Every Border
By Ramzy Baroud ‘We don’t even know who to be afraid of anymore,’ said Hama Ould Mohammad Bashir, a refugee from Mali (New York Times, July 18). ‘There are a lot of armed people, coming and going all the time.’ The humanitarian crisis in Mali is developing at an alarmingly fast pace. While there are […]
