The following is a heavily redacted version of a lecture delivered by Dr. Micaela Sahhar at Monash University in April 2017 as a guest lecturer in a course titled ‘the Arab-Israeli Conflict’ coordinated by the Australian Centre for Jewish Civilisation. The lecture delved into key issues in our understanding of Israel/Palestine, the so-called conflict and […]
The following excerpts have been reproduced with permission from the author. They appeared in Gaza Mom (2012), a book based on the blog written by El-Hadddad since 2004. (Excerpts taken from pages 213, 219-20, 254-5) The Story of the Year Gaza City, Palestine, December 18 2006 The Middle East has made its fair share of headlines this […]
As we reach the 50 year milestone of Occupation of the West Bank, Gaza Strip, East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights, the AJDS is devastated by the realities of the ongoing military occupation of Palestinians in the Occupied Territories. It is both painful and tragic because we believe it can end. In presenting the historical […]
On April 17, Palestinian prisoners in Israel launched a hunger strike in protest of the conditions under which they were held. The strike was ended after 40 days, when the Israeli government offered a partial agreement to their terms. The following statement was issued in solidarity with what came to be known as the Dignity […]
This is a slightly edited version of a piece that originally appeared in Overland, 23 May 2017. _ _ _ On Saturday morning I woke up at Sumud: Freedom Camp. The camp is set up in Sarura, a reclaimed Palestinian village in the South Hebron Hills in the West Bank. It has been built on the principle of sumud, […]
Haaretz 4 May 2017. Last week, Sgt Elor Azaria’s defence team, headed by Attorney Yoram Sheftel, submitted an application to present new evidence in their appeal against Azaria’s manslaughter conviction. The application details 14 incidents in which IDF soldiers shot and killed innocent people and did not stand trial. The application is part of a […]
Haaretz 18 May 2017. On Sunday 14 May, 12 South African ministers and deputy ministers started a 24-hour hunger strike as an act of solidarity with the striking Palestinian prisoners, in an attempt to increase economic and political pressure on Israel. This was initiated successfully by the Kathrada Foundation, named after late Apartheid fighter Ahmed […]
Haaretz 3 April 2017 The rockets from Gaza land on all citizens, regardless of their nationality, religion, or language. Yet the State claims there is higher probability that rockets will fall on a Jewish community than on an unrecognised Bedouin village in the Negev, even though both are equidistant from Gaza and within the hit […]
Last week Palestinian writer, cook and activist Laila El-Haddad appeared in Melbourne, hosted on her Australian tour by the Australian Jewish Democratic Society (AJDS). El-Haddad delivered a talk at the Wheeler Centre, a cooking demonstration at the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival (MFWF), and a talk about Culinary Resistance at the Moroccan Deli-cacy. Her cooking demonstration for […]
AJDS Community Organiser, Yael Winikoff, was recently interviewed by Veronica Matheson on J-Air about Laila El-Haddad’s imminent Australian tour and why the AJDS decided to bring her out here. The AJDS is committed to broadening and invigorating the dialog between Jews and Palestinians, said Yael, educating people about the living conditions of Palestinians in Gaza, and examining […]
