Jun
12
2016
By Daoud Kuttab
The bio of Waed Qannam reads like the perfect resume for a potential president of Palestine.
Born in the
Arroub refugee camp near Hebron in 1992; graduated in law from Palestine’s leading university, Al-Quds; holder of a master’s degree in law from Birzeit University; and active in the Fatah movement, Qannam became a resident of Jerusalem after his father, an eye doctor, moved to the Holy City in 2002. His mother is an activist in the Palestinian women’s movement and became the director general of the Women’s Ministry.
Qannam’s resume may have helped him reach the pinnacle of a presidential contest, but it was not the political one. A made-for-television contest that began in 2013, called “al-Raies” (Arabic for “president”), on Maan TV allows Palestinians to compete in front of a crowd and a jury made up of veteran politicians. President Qannam was “chosen” from a crowded field that included 1,180 Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza Strip after 40 grueling episodes. The decision as to who would become the “president” was taken by a jury made up of senior Palestinian political figures and local businessmen, along with votes from the public. He was voted president on the season finale that aired June 1. Continue Reading »
Jun
12
2016
By Daoud Kuttab
The cycle of violence in Palestine and Israel has become so predictable that almost anyone following the news can easily forecast what will happen next. For Palestinians, Israelis and the international community, the predictability of the cycle of violence points to lifting the Israeli occupation as the most effective way to end the violence. The June 8 attack on a market in Tel Aviv that left four Israelis dead is no exception to this dynamic.
Palestinians speak of the absence of a peace process and lack of a political horizon as a factor in the deepening cycle of violence. Muammar Orabi, director general of the Ramallah-based Wattan News Agency, told Al-Monitor that what happened in Tel Aviv is a natural outcome of the current political decline. “Palestinians have lost hope, and there is an unprecedented sense of frustration in the occupied territories,†Orabi said.
This opinion is not restricted to Palestinians. In an interview with journalist Ilana Dayan on Israel Army Radio (Galei Tzaha) on June 10, Ron Huldai, the popular mayor of Tel Aviv, pointed the blame. Huldai, a former air force pilot and ambitious Labor Party leader, said that there are more than 200 territorial disputes worldwide, adding, “We might be the only country in the world where another nation is under occupation without civil rights. You can’t hold people in a situation of occupation and hope they’ll reach the conclusion everything is alright.†Continue Reading »
