Published in the Washington Post
Has Israel Revived Hamas?
By Daoud Kuttab
Tuesday, December 30, 2008; A15

JERUSALEM — In its efforts to stop amateur rockets from nagging the residents of some of its southern cities, Israel appears to have given new life to the fledging Islamic movement in Palestine.

For two years, the Islamic Resistance Movement (known by its Arabic acronym, Hamas) has been losing support internally and externally. This wasn’t the case in the days after the party came to power democratically in early 2006; despite being unjustly ostracized by the international community for its anti-Israeli stance, Hamas enjoyed the backing of Palestinians and other Arabs. Having won a decisive parliamentary majority on an anti-corruption platform promising change and reform, Hamas worked hard to govern better than had Fatah, its rival and predecessor.
Continue Reading »

The following appeared in the Huffington Post

Daoud Kuttab

Posted December 14, 2008 | 12:25 PM (EST)

Israel’s foreign minister Tzipi Livni raised many eyebrows when speaking to Israeli high school students this week. Her attempts to sound tough while advocating the two state solution backfired badly. Even her attempts to repair the damage continued to reveal the basic problem of racism that Zionists have when it comes to Palestinians whether under their occupation or Palestinian citizens of Israel.
Continue Reading »

Daoud Kuttab

Lame-duck Palestinian, Israeli and US leaders are making serious effort these days to ensure that the Israeli-Palestinian peace process enters an irreversible track before they leave office.

This irreversible train left the station in September shortly after Israeli prime minister, Ehud Olmert, resigned from his office due to police investigation. Olmert, who has continued as caretaker prime minister, surprised the Israeli public by stating publicly that the ultimate solution of this conflict will require a return to the 1967 borders and will have to include Israel giving up parts of Jerusalem.
Continue Reading »