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Showing posts with label Good Citizenship. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Good Citizenship. Show all posts

Sunday, April 5, 2026

Dear America- American leadership has been opting to waste billions and now trillions of our tax money on war, all for what?

Palestinian Christians celebrating Holy Saturday in Gaza City Holy Family Catholic Church April 4, 2026 
4/5/2026 Easter day letter I just sent to my elected leaders 

Dear America,

Money can be used for good, or for evil.

American leadership has been opting to waste billions and now trillions of our tax money on war, all for what? 

No one wins modern war.  Stealing life or land or resources from others is WRONG, and always will be. 

War is a win for all the worst in this world: A win for cruelty & violence. A win for death & destruction. A win for thievery & lies. A win for toxic thought & dangerous propaganda. A win for greed & corruption. A win for racist hate & revenge.  A win for planting & perpetuating terrorism. A win for pollution & escalating poverty.

FYI WAR is evil.

Stealing American workers' Social Security in order to fund nefarious projects is also evil and wrong. For decades workers have been overworked & underpaid, all so that greedy CEOs can jet set to parties and bribe our elected officials.  Many workers count on Social Security and Medicare for when they are no longer able to work.  Our country's highest priority should be to make sure that the stolen social security funds are returned.

We should be investing in infrastructure and people needs here AND globally- not war, and certainly not Israel.  Israel, armed with American money and weaponry, has been attacking its neighbors for decades, demolishing homes, destroying commerce and jobs, and creating a massive refugee crisis- in addition to many murders.  Israeli torture, both physical and psychological, is widespread, and so are Israeli lies and propaganda.

Yes Virginia, Israel has a right to exist- Israel also has a right to change its name to Mecca or Magical Land of Pink Unicorns if that is what all its citizens (including refugees in forced exile) prefer... However, Israel has no right to steal land and resources from Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Iraq, Iran... etc... and America.

Sincerely,

Anne Selden Annab

NOTES https://anniesnewletters.blogspot.com/search/label/Notes

A strategy ‘to make life intolerable’: Israeli settlers are driving Christians out of West Bank. The Taybeh community has survived crusaders and the Ottoman and British empires, but the latest attacks leave its future in question

"We may speak thousands of languages, but we all call this planet home. No matter where we come from, protecting our Earth is a shared responsibility. We need more ambitious #ClimateAction — for our planet and the generations to come."

Over 100 US legal experts condemn strikes on Iran as possible ‘war crimes’ : United States-based scholars sign open letter raising concerns about conduct, rhetoric during US-Israeli war on Iran.

Death, displacement and military duties: children plunged into crisis by Middle East war. The US-Israeli war will have a lifelong impact on millions of children across the Middle East

What Would Jesus Say to a Zionist Christian? ... (umkahlil wrote this in 2009, and it is just as applicable today.)

Palestinian Thoub - Rome Thoubs Exhibition 2026 The cross-point of Palestinian identities

This Week in Palestine- Digital Horizons: Entrepreneurship and Economic Resilience

1935, Tiberias, Palestine 🇵🇸 Fishermen fixing their nets.

"In order for me to write poetry that isn't political I must listen to the birds and in order to hear the birds the warplanes must be silent" Marwan Makhoul

This year marks 50 years of honoring Land Day — a commemoration of the Palestinian ongoing struggle against the Israeli government's theft of Palestinian land. "With immense grief and rage at the horrors the Israeli military is committing in Gaza and the occupied West Bank right now, we recognize Palestinians’ deep roots in their land as we support the struggle for Palestinian freedom. We honor the steadfastness and resilience of those who have resisted land theft by the Israeli government, military, and Israeli settlers." Jewish Voice for Peace

"This moment in Jerusalem feels heavy in a way that is hard to fully grasp. The Old City stands closed under the Israeli occupation, its narrow streets unusually silent, and for the first time in modern history, both Al Aqsa Mosque and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre have been shut for such a prolonged period. Places that have always been alive with prayer, footsteps, and quiet devotion now feel distant, almost unreachable. For many, it is not just about restricted access, but about a deeper sense of separation from something sacred and rooted in identity. And still, people hold on, to faith, to memory, to the belief that these doors will open again, and that the life and spirit of Jerusalem will return to what it has always been." Palestinian Artist Sliman Mansour

Pope Leo XIV: Planes should bring peace, not war and destruction ...Pope Leo XIV thanks the Italian national airline ITA Airways for carrying the Pope on his Apostolic Journeys, and laments the use of aircraft as carriers of death and destruction in theaters of war.

"On the International Day for the Right to Truth about Human Rights Abuses, we honour victims and human rights defenders who break the silence and uncover the facts." Volker Türk, United Nations Human Rights

"The parallels between the Germany of the 1930s and the United States of America today are frightening." A Holocaust teacher’s warning: Will ‘good Americans’ speak up this time? | PennLive letters

Trump’s Iran ‘talks’: a war, a pause – and a distraction... The US president claims progress in talks with Iran, but uncertainty persists. Meanwhile, Israel advances West Bank annexation under cover of a crisis

Trump’s sanctions against a UN human rights expert show free speech is dying: Francesca Albanese recommended ICC arrests and investigations over Gaza. Who will be the administration’s next target?

"One Gulf diplomat, who has direct knowledge of the talks and is furious with Witkoff and Kushner’s behaviour, described the pair as “Israeli assets that had conspired to force the US president into entering a war from which he is now desperate to get himself out of”."

Israeli settlers carry out series of West Bank attacks as security forces stand by

Witnesses describe coordinated raids in which homes and vehicles were set on fire and several Palestinians injured

"An entire Economist article on famine in Gaza doesn’t say the word “Israel” once. Not even when describing damage to farmland and water facilities or severely restricted aid deliveries. Saying *who* is destroying the farmland and restricting aid seems like basic info to include." Assal Rad

"Church leaders argue that invoking Christian identity while directing military actions that have killed thousands amounted to a political use of the faith, reducing Christianity to a public‑relations tool rather than a moral framework. It is this stark contrast between rhetoric and lived reality that fueled widespread anger among Christian leaders in Jerusalem and beyond."

“It’s time for the force of the law to prevail over the law of the force. It’s time for diplomacy to prevail over war.” Antonio Guterres, Secretary General of The United Nations

A UN expert claimed Israel was systematically torturing Palestinians on a scale "that suggests collective vengeance and destructive intent", in a report released to media on Friday.

Israel has crushed Unrwa in Gaza – and the rest of the world has done nothing " I bow out of my role for the organisation at a perilous time for the international law. There are consequences not just for Palestinians, but the wider Middle East" -Philippe Lazzarini

On top of all that, official Washington is disregarding decency, a minimal need for a sustainable society, and playing footsy with the truth. An example of action devoid of decency is having fun promoting the war on social media. The White House, Pentagon and U.S. Central Command posted videos mixing actual war scenes with clips from violent video games such as “Call of Duty” and “Grand Theft Auto,” and blues artist John Lee Hooker’s song “Boom Boom” (opening lyric: “Boom, boom, boom, boom. I’m gonna shoot you right down.”)" - John Baer in The Patriot News

In 1945, 50 nations came together in San Francisco to create a new organization for peace, prosperity & human rights- the United Nations

Israel’s settlement expansion drives mass displacement in West Bank [Palestine] – United Nations report 17 March 2026

Israel is using the ongoing war to intensify multi-layered violations against Palestinians during Ramadan and Easter. Al-Aqsa stands empty. The Holy Sepulchre is sealed for the first time in history. Demolitions, settler attacks, and movement restrictions are surging.

Joe Kent, Trump's counterterrorism chief, resigns, blaming members of the media, as well as high-ranking Israeli officials and lobbyists, for prompting Trump to abandon his America First agenda.

Trump’s Iran war has cost Americans at least $11bn already. And that’s just the start- That $11.3bn doesn’t include any estimate of repairing facilities or replacing losses.- Arwa Mahdawi

Dear America- Centuries before America's Declaration of Independence in 1776 (and our subsequent Bill of Rights)- in 1095 the First Crusade was proclaimed by Pope Urban II— with a call to arms for Christians to reconquer Jerusalem from the Muslims.

Please stop funding and fueling Israel's wars and the ongoing destruction of historic Palestine, Lebanon, and Syria... and Iran.

War and terrorism are for tyrants, not for freedom or justice. Bully tactics teach all the wrong lessons.

Billionaires want Ballrooms. The rest of us want clean water; safe neighborhoods; good schools, libraries, & museums; National Parks; playgrounds; PBS; good job opportunities for ourselves and our children; affordable heath-care; AND PEACE.

Funding and arming terrorism and violence is evil and wrong: America should not be funding, arming, defending, or trusting today's Israel in any way, shape or form.

A barbaric new era has already begun as Americans are duped into being wage slaves for billionaires who have no respect for basic human rights and the rule of fair and just laws.

Golden Rule Thinking IS GOOD

Our land and resources are being gobbled up for AI data centers for what purpose? Is it for the greater good of tax paying citizens- or is it to feed the greed of corporations and companies that already use our data to charge us as much as they can at every turn.

Real freedom, justice, and democracy are being embezzled by corporate greed and political corruption to empower Israel and war.

"ISRAEL SAYS" is not God talking.

Israel has a right to exist, but Israel has no right to starve and displace the men, women and children of historic Palestine.

The vast majority of Americans are not wealthy & the taxes that We The People pay are being diverted into funding religious bigotry and terror via Israel's cruel war on the native non-Jewish men, women, and children of historic Palestine. HAMAS cruelty and stupidity echoes Zionist cruelty and stupidity and on and on it goes. Neither approach will build peace or security.

The weapons industry and a global war machine- AND INJUSTICE- burgeon with American tax payer funds.

Violence is a problem- not the answer.

"The United Nations is the only place on Earth where all the world's nations come together to discuss common problems and find shared solutions that benefit all of humanity. This intergovernmental organization born out of the ashes of the Second World War remains indispensable to the pursuit of world peace, justice, equality and sustainable development" https://www.un.org/en/

The right of refugees to return to homes and lands they were expelled from is an individual right and cannot be unilaterally abrogated by third parties.  https://imeu.org/resources/resources/fact-sheet-palestinian-refugees-the-right-of-return-under-international-law/441

"Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world..."   https://www.un.org/en/about-us/universal-declaration-of-human-rights

DEAR AMERICA

Sunday, February 23, 2025

The BBC documentary was rated 5 stars by @guardian before it was pulled... Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone review – these incredible children offer a sliver of hope: This often-distressing BBC documentary follows astonishing kids working as TikTok chefs and hospital porters – and shows their determination to smile in the face of unimaginable horror

All the children in the film share a disorienting matter-of-fact tone’ … Abdullah, who acts as narrator in Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone. Photograph: Amjad Al Fayoumi/BBC/Hoyo Films
 Miqdaad Versi

The BBC documentary was rated 5 stars by @guardian before it was pulled

Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone review – these incredible children offer a sliver of hope

Mon 17 Feb 2025 17.00 ESTLast modified on Fri 21 Feb 2025 11.37 EST

The children of Gaza will be its future, if they are able to remain there. Starting several months into Israel’s bombardment and continuing right up until the recent ceasefire, London-based directors Jamie Roberts and Yousef Hammash made their documentary Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone by remotely instructing two local cameramen, Amjad Al Fayoumi and Ibrahim Abu Ishaiba, as they captured life inside the “safe zone” – an ever-changing, ever-dwindling area in the south-west of Gaza, designated by Israel as the place where displaced Palestinians should reside. That the cameras predominantly follow children has an unexpected double effect: it makes the film’s many deeply distressing moments all the more unbearable, yet it tinges them with some sort of hope.

The kids are led by 13-year-old Abdullah, who acts as narrator as well as appearing on camera. “This area used to be colourful,” he says, briskly touring a scene of apocalyptic destruction in Khan Younis, where he lived in a house that sheltered 40 people before Israeli bombs turned it to dusty rubble. “Now, it’s grey.”

Abdullah maintains a wryly sunny tone as he describes how you live after you’ve lost everything, and his determination to smile while surviving is matched by 10-year-old Renad, whose method of coping with shells landing a terrifyingly short distance away is to laugh and chatter, even as the earth shakes. Renad concentrates instead on her online cooking channel: we see her recording a guide to making a dessert, apologising to viewers for having to use powdered milk. She is a natural presenter, fluent and engagingly upbeat. “They’re from all over the world,” Renad says of her growing TikTok fanbase. “If there is too long between posting videos, they check on me, thinking I got killed.”

Most remarkable is Zakaria, an indefatigable 11-year-old who chooses to spend all his time bustling around al-Aqsa, the only fully functioning hospital still standing in Gaza, having appointed himself to work as a volunteer... READ MORE https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/17/gaza-how-to-survive-a-warzone-review-these-incredible-children-offer-a-sliver-of-hope

 [AS ALWAYS PLEASE GO TO THE LINK TO READ GOOD ARTICLES (or watch videos) IN FULL: HELP SHAPE ALGORITHMS (and conversations) THAT EMPOWER DECENCY, DIGNITY, JUSTICE & PEACE... and hopefully Palestine ]

Wednesday, December 21, 2016

Growing Gardens for Palestine... #Christmas #Palestine #PalmTrees #Mary... Informative, inspiring and entertaining facebook posts today from my friend Mike

Wednesday, December 21, 2016
#Christmas #Palestine #PalmTrees #Mary

Informative, inspiring and entertaining facebook posts today from my friend Mike -

So I was in the Mall yesterday when I heard some ladies discussing #Christmas and the weather. A couple of them had just gotten back from Florida and were commenting about palm trees decorated with lights and how out of place it felt, and so, once again, sensing an opportunity to educate and inform, I chimed in by asking them if they had ever seen a Nativity Scene. "Of course" they all replied. I them asked what kind of tree is always included in those scenes. They gave me a puzzled look, and finally one of them said "I am almost sure its a palm tree". I said that is correct, a palm tree because the trees that you are used to seeing decorated originated in European tradition, not #Palestinian because those trees are not at all native to #Palestine, the birth place of #Jesus., while palm trees are.

I then asked them why is a palm tree included in the nativity scene, and of course none of them knew, thinking it was there for "decoration". I then informed them that in the Quran, where the blessed Virgin Mary has her own story, we are told that after having given birth, weak and hungry, the Archangel Gabriel appeared to her and instructed her to "nudge the palm tree" for sustenance, whereby ripe dates would fall for her to eat, and today, science has proven that dates are a "super food"...They were amazed, and by now I had an audience of about 10 people, and so we went in depth about Palestine, Islam and Jesus, and I was peppered with questions which I was most certainly more than happy to answer, complete with pictures because I "conveniently" keep thousands of relevant photos of Palestine, #Bethlehem, and #Jerusalem...One at a time


Jesus is Born

The pains of childbirth drove her to clutch at the trunk of a date-palm tree and she cried out in anguish:

“Would that I had died before this, and had been forgotten and out of sight!” (Quran 19:23)

Mary delivered her child right there, at the foot of the date tree. She was exhausted after the birth, and filled with distress and fear, but nevertheless she heard a voice calling out to her. .

“Grieve not! Your Lord has provided you a stream of clear water under you; and shake the trunk of palm tree towards you; it will let fall fresh ripe dates upon you. So eat and drink and be glad...” (Quran 19:24)

God provided Mary with water, as a stream suddenly appeared beneath the place she was sitting. He also provided her with food; all she had to do was shake the trunk of the date tree. Mary was scared and frightened; she felt so weak, having just given birth, so how could she possibly shake the immense trunk of a date tree? But God continued to provide Mary with sustenance.

The next event was indeed another miracle, and as human beings we learn a great lesson from this. Mary didn’t need to shake the date tree, which would have been impossible; she only had to make an effort. As she attempted to follow God’s command, fresh ripe dates fell from the tree and God said to Mary: “…eat, drink and be glad.” (Quran 19:26)

Mary now had to take her new born child and go back to face her family. Of course she was afraid, and God knew this well. Thus He directed her not to speak. It would not have been possible for Mary to explain how she had suddenly become the mother of a new born child. Since she was unmarried, her people would not believe her explanations. God said:

“And if you see any human being, say: ‘Verily! I have vowed a fast unto the Most Gracious (God) so I shall not speak to any human being this day.’” (Quran 19:26)


 Bethlehem, Palestine...Circa 1898































 

Thursday, March 17, 2016

Prize Winning Palestinian Teacher Returning To A Hero's Welcome In The West Bank Says "It's Time For All Kinds Of Violence To Stop."

Palestinian teacher Hanan al-Hroub, left is kissed by her father Hamed Obeidallah during a welcome ceremony upon her arrival back home, in the West Bank city Jericho, Wednesday, March 16, 2016. Officials, family members and friends celebrated the teacher upon her return to the country after attending the One Million Dollar Global Teacher Prize nnouncement ceremony at the Global Education and Skills Forum in Dubai last Sunday, March 13, 2016. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)

Palestinian teacher Hanan al-Hroub, right, holds her One Million Dollar Global Teacher Prize at a welcome ceremony upon her return to the West Bank city Jericho, Wednesday, March 16, 2016. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)

Hanan al-Hroub, 43, a primary school teacher in el-Bireh near Ramallah, spoke to a jubilant crowd Wednesday as she crossed the Jordanian border into the West Bank.

Judges with the Varkey Foundation's Global Teacher Prize on Sunday recognized her work in teaching non-violence via her book "We Play and Learn.".... READ MORE

 Palestinian teacher Hanan al-Hroub, left, holds her trophy along with the Palestinian Education Minister Dr. Sabri Saidam during a welcome ceremony in the West Bank city Jericho, Wednesday, March 16, 2016. Officials, family members and friends celebrated the teacher upon her return to the country after attending the One Million Dollar Global Teacher Prize announcement ceremony at the Global Education and Skills Forum in Dubai last Sunday, March 13, 2016. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)
Palestinian teacher Hanan al-Hroub, holds her trophy while attending a welcome ceremony upon her arrival back home, in the West Bank city Jericho, Wednesday, March 16, 2016. Officials, family members and friends celebrated the teacher upon her return to the country after attending the prize announcement ceremony at the Global Education and Skills Forum in Dubai last Sunday, March 13, 2016. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)
 

Friday, October 24, 2014

Golden Rule thinking every day for 69 years & counting: Happy 69th Birthday to the United Nations! #UNDay

Happy 69th Birthday to the United Nations!

From distributing food rations to improving maternal health, the United Nations is committed to helping people every day. Tell them why you support the UN. #UNDay



Golden Rule Thinking
Eleanor Roosevelt 14 years old in 1898... America's Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962) helped shape the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948
The Commission on Human Rights was made up of 18 members from various political, cultural and religious backgrounds. Eleanor Roosevelt, widow of American President Franklin D. Roosevelt, chaired the UDHR drafting committee. With her were René Cassin of France, who composed the first draft of the Declaration, the Committee Rapporteur Charles Malik of Lebanon, Vice-Chairman Peng Chung Chang of China, and John Humphrey of Canada, Director of the UN’s Human Rights Division, who prepared the Declaration’s blueprint. But Mrs. Roosevelt was recognized as the driving force for the Declaration’s adoption.

  After adopting it on December 10, 1948, the UN General Assembly called upon all Member States to publicize the text of the Declaration and "to cause it to be disseminated, displayed, read and expounded principally in schools and other educational institutions, without distinction based on the political status of countries or territories."


Wednesday, October 15, 2014

My letter to USAToday RE "Palestinian advocacy misunderstood: Objections" by Andrew Dalack & Bayan Founas, National Students for Justice in Palestine

USA Today: Members of Students for Justice in Palestine at University of Tennessee and others march in Knoxville, Tenn., on July 18.(Photo: Megan Boehnke, AP)
RE USAToday letter "Palestinian advocacy misunderstood: Objections" by Andrew Dalack & Bayan Founas, National Students for Justice in Palestine
http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2014/10/14/campus-activism-palestinians-israelis-your-say/17287593/

Dear Editor,

Delighted to see the USAToday letter "Palestinian advocacy misunderstood: Objections" by Andrew Dalack & Bayan Founas, National Students for Justice in Palestine. Delighted that the students wrote a such a thoughtful letter in response to being misunderstood, and delighted that USAToday chose to publish their letter.

I would have posted my comment online in your comment section but some hate filled individual already posting there ten hours ago was practicing his free speech by being rude to and about Muslims.  His comment is not only rude it is also irrelevant since many Palestinians are Christians.  They are living links to a precious heritage, as are all citizens of the world in one way or another.

Ending the Israel-Palestine conflict ASAP with a fully secular two state solution in line with international law, and fully respecting universal human rights (including but not limited to the Palestinian refugees inalienable right to return to original homes and lands), would go a long way towards curbing religious bigotry and extremism everywhere, even here in America.

Sincerely,
Anne Selden Annab

NOTES
Our words have a way of echoing out into either war or peace.... My Published Letters 2014

Citizens of the Earth

Hussein Ibish: The three-way Israeli-Palestinian impasse- Israel, the PA and Hamas are all trapped in their own policies with no idea how to move forward.

In #Palestine #Olive Trees witnessed foreign invaders for thousands of years...

THIS WEEK IN PALESTINE: Ethnographic Habitat, Place Memories, and Cultural Identity

UK Parliament votes to recognize Palestinian state- a symbolic move intended to increase pressure for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Dorothy Shea: "Palestinians should be applauded for largely eliminating the gender gap in education. Unlike in some parts of the Middle East and North Africa, Palestinian girls and young women enjoy equal access to education as their male counterparts."


Islamic State Seeks to Justify Enslaving Yazidi Women and Girls in Iraq... The article on slavery confirms practices documented by Human Rights Watch, which says Yazidi women and girls were forced to marry Islamic State fighters and shipped out in busloads from Iraq to Syria to be sold off as prizes

UK MPs To Vote On Recognition Of Palestine... "Dr Hanan Ashrawi, executive committee member of the PLO, told Sky News the Palestinian cause must be "rescued" to prevent jihadists [from] using it to fuel radicalisation and further extremism in the region."

Translating the Obvious ... A poem for peace in Growing Gardens for Palestine by Anne Selden Annab

U.S. calls for renewed commitment to lasting Mideast peace: "... a renewed commitment from everybody to work for peace that meets the aspirations of all, for Israelis, for Palestinians for all people of this region"

In a common struggle for education and against extremism: "“If with my humble efforts the voice of tens of millions of children in the world who are living in servitude is being heard, congratulations to all,” Kailash Satyarthi on winning the Nobel Peace Prize 2014

Today is International Day of the Girl Child! To mark the day, Hina Jilani calls on the international community and civil society to work together to improve the lives of girls and women: Let's not be afraid to challenge the traditions that harm girls

New Ibish article: Hisham, Hope and Despair..."The crucial point is that the one thing that is certain is that the choices that we make individually and collectively will have a direct and profound impact on the short, medium and long-term outcomes. And, therefore, our choices must be carefully considered, deliberate and purposive, while apathy and inaction are not options."

To promote the values of dialogue, tolerance and mutual respect, among religions and cultures... Let’s teach our youth to build, not destroy

Ashrawi: The recognition of Palestine is Human, Moral, Legal, and Political Imperative

"Let’s not feed Islamophobic bigotry... The great divide is not between faiths, but one between intolerant zealots of any tradition and the large numbers of decent, peaceful believers likewise found in each tradition." Nicholas Kristof

Last Thursday, the United Nations released a report that could provide us with one of the keys to defeating ISIS. Unfortunately, it received almost zero media attention.

"We see martyrs, children as young as 7, being portrayed as resistance fighters after being slaughtered by Israeli forces. Although we would like to convince ourselves that they have died for “the cause”, they have in fact died because of the cause." Mariam Barg

Hussein Ibish: US has a responsibility to rein in Israeli settlements

Tala Haikal: "It may not be possible to immediately free all the kidnapped girls and women due to the scope of the conflict with ISIS and the geographical dispersal of the captives in various locations. Some of these women and girls can be freed only once ISIS is destroyed."

STAY CONNECTED... Given the U.S. commitment to religious freedom, and to the international covenants that guarantee it as the inalienable right of every human being, the United States seeks to: Promote freedom of religion and conscience throughout the world as a fundamental human right and as a source of stability for all countries

UN report spotlights 'staggering' Islamic State atrocities in Iraq... "The group, which is fighting in Iraq and Syria, has carried out a wide range of atrocities, including mass executions, abductions, rape and other forms of sexual and physical violence against women and children"

Vatican seeks Mideast Christians' right of return

US sharply criticizes new Israeli housing project

Non-violent resistance is Palestine’s most powerful weapon

Tala Haikal: Empathy Is Essential to Humanity

Normalizing Intelligent Conversations, Diplomatic Support, and Hope for Palestine... ATFP Panel Briefing: Israeli-Palestinian War in a New Regional Landscape.

ATFP... American Task Force on Palestine

ATFP Calls for De-Escalation between Israel and the Palestinians

Ziad Asali

International Year of Solidarity with the Palestinian People 2014

UNRWA photo and film archive for Palestine refugees

About UNWRA: ’The Long Journey of Palestine Refugee Women’ candidly portrays the lives and experiences of Palestine refugee women, this collection is a testament not only to their own strength and dignity, but also to the richness and resilience of their community.

Walking Palestine & The Abraham Path... a creative space for stories that highlight the unique culture, heritage and hospitality of the region

It's time for Palestinians and Israelis to share a just peace... It's time for freedom from occupation... It's time for equal rights.... It's time for the healing of wounded souls..... World Week for Peace in Palestine Israel: "Let my people go!"... 21 - 27 September 2014 An initiative of the Palestine Israel Ecumenical Forum (PIEF) of the World Council of Churches

Palestinian Refugees (1948-NOW) refused their right to return... and their right to live in peace free from religious bigotry and injustice.

1948

Time and time again I have watched the cycle of incitement and spin sabotage support for Palestine

Clarifying why Arab and Muslim Americans should be smart rather than stupid

Live by the Golden Rule


An Anne Frank Moment ... a poem by Anne Selden Annab

"Where, after all, do universal human rights begin?

America/Israel/Palestine 1776
America/Israel/Palestine 1948: All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

The Golden Rule... Do unto others as you would have them do unto you

My Published Letters 2014

*************
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/11/opinion/how-to-answer-the-fears-of-a-palestinian-mother.html?ref=opinion

The Opinion Pages | Letters

How to Answer the Fears of a Palestinian Mother


To the Editor:
Re “A Mother’s Fear in East Jerusalem,” by Rula Salameh (Op-Ed, July 10), and “Religious Freedom in Peril,” by Nicholas Kristof (column, July 10):
Horrified by the hate crimes and violence generated by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Ms. Salameh condemns Israel, but she doesn’t condemn the nefarious part that Islamists are playing in perpetuating the tragic conflict.
Mr. Kristof admits that he was reluctant to write his column “because religious repression is an awkward topic when it thrives in Muslim countries.”
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is ruining many lives; it needs to end, for everyone’s sake. Big-picture, inclusive thinking is the only way out of this cruel mess.
Ending the conflict with a just and lasting peace built by two fully secular sovereign states, Israel and Palestine, both fully respecting international law and universal human rights, is the best way forward.
ANNE SELDEN ANNAB
Mechanicsburg, Pa., July 10, 2014

*************
The Baltimore Sun
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/readersrespond/bs-ed-israel-20140709,0,1374094.story#ixzz370OY2jif


Freedom of religion, as well as freedom from religion, is crucial to the stability of all countries. Arming religion with lethal weaponry plus public funds is a very bad idea ("A dangerous turning point in Israel," July 7).

The Israel-Palestine conflict has always been personal for the people who live there, and the momentum for making the Israel-Palestine conflict into a religious conflagration starts with the fact that Israel foolishly insists on being "a Jewish state."

Israel being "Jewish" translates into taxpayers' money and international aid generously funding Israeli policies that privilege Jews, including but not limited to Israel's illegal occupation of the West Bank and Jews-only settlement projects built on land usurped from native, non-Jewish Arab Palestinians.

These policies have created and exasperated a huge refugee crisis, with countless Palestinians pushed into poverty, forced exile and despair.

Islamist extremists have risen up to make a bad situation worse in every possible way. Were it not for the Islamists' reign of terror, many more people and governments worldwide would have much more sympathy and compassion for the Palestinians' plight.

Advocating full respect for international law and universal basic human rights to shape a secular, two-state solution with two sovereign nations living side by side in peace and security is the only way out of the mess made by the religious extremists and hatemongers on both sides.

There are many good and decent people on both sides of the Israel-Palestine conflict who deserve a chance to live and raise their children in peace and dignity. Worldwide the rule of fair and just laws is an ongoing process that requires educated, empowered and engaged citizens who are willing and able to see beyond their own personal suffering and sorrows. The best revenge is living well.

Anne Selden Annab, Mechanicsburg, Penn.


*************

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/readersrespond/bs-ed-israel-asa-letter-20140215,0,2785848.story

Don't silence criticism of Israel [Letter]



I totally agree with Melani McAlister's point that the "question of how Americans should respond to the deteriorating situation in Israel and Palestine — what our government should do, what we as individuals can or should do — should be openly and freely debated" ("Maryland bills would stifle academic freedom," Feb. 12).

Already, social pressure tends to convince numerous concerned Americans to voluntarily refrain from criticizing Israel. Some stay silent because they do not want to be falsely labeled as anti-Semitic. Meanwhile, many other people, including movie stars who prefer to empower Israel and Israeli propaganda continue to be highly motivated to do so at every opportunity.

More than 60 years ago, Israel's application to membership in the United Nations clearly pointed out that Israel was directly contravening "the previous recommendations of the United Nations in at least three important respects: in its attitude on the problem of Arab refugees, on the delimitation of its territorial boundaries, and on the question of Jerusalem."

Since then, things have only gone from bad to worse. Did you know that the number of Palestinian structures (including many Palestinian homes) demolished by the Israeli authorities in the Jordan Valley more than doubled, from 192 in 2012 to 393 in 2013? Adding in American legislation to penalize the few American scholars and students who are willing to publicly discuss the very real suffering and plight of the Palestinians gives sovereign Israel even more power to oppress, persecute, disenfranchise and displace the native non-Jewish population of historic Palestine.

Islamists thrive on the continuation of the Israel-Palestine conflict, and so do anti-American hate mongers and many misinformation campaigns. It is in our best interests as a nation, and as conscientious compassionate global citizens, to seek the full and total truth about Israel and Palestine and to do all we can to support an actual end to the Israel-Palestine conflict with a just and lasting peace shaped by a fully secular, two state solution that fully respects international law and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Anne Selden Annab, Mechanicsburg, Pa.

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http://www.latimes.com/opinion/la-le-0111-saturday-israelis-palestinians-20140111,0,6299511.story#axzz2q99pO6jx

Letters: Bringing peace to the Middle East

January 11, 2014

The peace process has been tragically unsuccessful, and war in the region has produced terrible consequences. No one in the Middle East is safer, and many countries are much less stable now than before.

Multiple factors, including religious extremism and terrorism motivated by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, are likely to make this dangerous situation go from bad to worse.

Considering all that, I have to agree with the gist of your editorial, and I very much hope that more people do what they can to help make a just and lasting peace for both Israel and the Palestinians a reality.

Anne Selden Annab
Mechanicsburg, Penn.