Symbols of Palestine- Palestinian artist- Fedaa Boqaileh, 1948... "I dream of a gallery … one day , exact vision here… where people can smell the jasmine, hear the oud,share a coffee and sit to admire falasteen…"

Palestinian artist-  Fedaa Boqaileh, 1948

 juthur1948

I dream of a gallery … one day , exact vision here… where people can smell the jasmine, hear the oud,share a coffee and sit to admire falasteen…

And for a moment, they understand that home is more than a place, it is something carried, remembered, and lovingly recreated, somewhere dreamt…

Until that gallery exists, I’ll keep drawing it into being…-Fedaa

 

https://www.instagram.com/p/DbgwVFnizd4/ 

[AS ALWAYS PLEASE GO TO THE LINK TO READ GOOD ARTICLES (or quotes) IN FULL: HELP SHAPE ALGORITHMS (and conversations) THAT EMPOWER DECENCY, DIGNITY, JUSTICE & PEACE... and hopefully Palestine, or at least fair and just laws and policies here, there- and everywhere]

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.

Political cartoon from 1906, by artist William Balfour Ker

 

letter I just wrote & sent to my elected leaders

Dear America,

This month, so far, saw snow and bitter cold ending & Ramadan and Lent beginning & Aloka the Peace Dog arrive in Washington Dc with the Buddhist Monks walking for peace. 

Winter is ending, flowers will soon start to bloom- will the flowers be blooming be on America's grave?  I hope not.

This month, so far, also saw church leaders highlighting threats "to Christian heritage by Israeli authorities: financial pressure, municipal taxes, restrictions on freedom of movement for worshipers, settler violence, takeover of Church lands, hate crimes, and barriers for West Bank teachers reaching Christian schools in East Jerusalem."

Many Americans can't afford health care, home heating bills, or eating out, but our elected leaders keep opting to invest oodles of our hard earned tax dollars into a very foreign country called Israel and the military-industrial complex that has been aggressively polluting planet earth, exasperating racist hate & freely bombing babies and children in impoverished refugee camps.

PLUS the Trump Administration and its minions are doing all they can to undermine and destroy the United Nations, international law, and ICC International Criminal Court... Golly Gee I wonder why.

Meanwhile American battleships and troops are gearing up to bomb Iran. 

American politicians and billionaire business owners (plus many a wanna be) have been borrowing vast sums of money to invest in building numerous land and energy gobbling data centers/hyperscalers that fuel AI delusions. 

We need good jobs- real jobs- not AI... and certainly not war. 

We need to be working with the international community before it shuts us out completely. 

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.

Sincerely,

Anne Selden Annab

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

'In Israel's eyes, we are terrorists' | In search of Palestine: episode 1 – video... In Search of Palestine

Saint Valentina was from Caesarea of Palestine... The ancient Latin name “Valentina” means “strong, vigorous and healthy.”

The Peace Walk “a powerful reminder that peace is practiced step by step. In a divided time, this is what it looks like to stand up for the best of who we are. Love demands endurance. Peace is strength.” MLKIII

Whether on a long road or a church stage, Aloka remains a steadfast support to the venerable monks, proving that peace is a journey shared by all beings...

Church leaders highlight threats to Christian heritage by Israeli authorities: financial pressure, municipal taxes (Arnona), restrictions on freedom of movement for worshippers, settler violence, takeover of Church lands, hate crimes, and barriers for West Bank teachers reaching Christian schools in East Jerusalem.

"Yesterday, I was honored to welcome the Buddhist monks to Washington National Cathedral, to learn from their example, and as Christians to recommit ourselves to the way of peace for all people. We are so grateful, so inspired, and so grateful that the monks are calling out the best in all of us as they make their pilgrimage among us. Their commitment to embody and bring peace to us all. Our response–across all that seems to divide us as a nation–reveals how united we are in our longing for peace, God willing, our readiness for peace. The monks, like all our spiritual masters of all faiths, including Jesus, remind us that true peace begins in the human heart, and in genuine peace offerings to those we love, the we struggle to love, and even those we would consider our adversaries." Mariann Edgar Budde, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington DC, USA

Bishop Theodosios Atallah Hanna: Resolving the Palestinian issue is the key to peace....

Israel’s security cabinet has approved plans that pave the way for more settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory

Her father’s war grave in Gaza was bulldozed by Israel. Amid the grief and anger, she wants answers... " “They have no respect for the living, so why would they respect the dead?” Wilma says of the Israeli government."

Human Rights Watch researchers resign after report on Palestinian right of return blocked : The organization claims the report, which finds Israel’s denial of the right of return is a crime against humanity, is ‘paused pending further analysis and research’

‘A violation of our history’: Palestinian uproar over Israel’s plan to seize historic West Bank site- Residents of Sebastia say heritage project is pretext for massive land grab and expansion of Jewish settlements

US politics: After years spent documenting state terror, I know it when I see it. And I see it now in the US and Israel. It’s chilling to watch as Trump and Netanyahu adopt the methods of regimes their countries once condemned

"The true irony is, state terror does not make a state safer. When democratic states adopt the methods of tyrannies, they become weaker. Their global credibility frays. They sacrifice the legitimacy they once held that distinguishes them from the regimes they claim to oppose."

The Women Who Shaped the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Holocaust Remembrance Day 2026 "The genocide did not begin with concentration camps and gas chambers; it started with apathy and silence in the face of injustice, and with the corrosive dehumanization of the other. Today, and always, we need to remember this." Volker Turk, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

"We call on Israel to immediately cease such actions against UNRWA premises, respect the Agency’s mandate, lift all restrictions imposed on its activities, and fully comply with its obligations under international law, in line with the latest advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice of 22 October 2025 on the Obligations of Israel in relation to the Presence and Activities of the United Nations, other International Organizations and Third States in and in relation to the Occupied Palestinian territory. "

Dear America,  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

"In the shadow of famine and under skies thick with grief, we still reach for one another, not to escape, but to stay human. It’s that one quiet moment that gives us the push to keep showing up; to hold on to the land, to memory, to whatever still softens us. Somewhere between the olive trees and the ash, something in us still reaches back." Sliman Mansour, Palestinian

sliman.mansour

A wild flower from Galilee (وردة برية من الجليل), acrylic on canvas, 2020

 "Sometimes, it’s the quietest encounters that remind us to keep going; to speak, to feel, to share beauty, even when the world is burning. In the shadow of famine and under skies thick with grief, we still reach for one another, not to escape, but to stay human. It’s that one quiet moment that gives us the push to keep showing up; to hold on to the land, to memory, to whatever still softens us. Somewhere between the olive trees and the ash, something in us still reaches back." Sliman Mansour, Palestinian

From his website  https://slimanmansour.com/

Born in 1947, Mansour spent his childhood around the verdant hills and fields of Birzeit — where he was born — and later his adolescence in Bethlehem and Jerusalem. These experiences left a significant mark on his work, heightening a sense of gradual loss in Palestine, especially after the occupation of the West Bank and Jerusalem in 1967. His early experiences also presented him with the symbols and images he would later use to preserve and highlight Palestinian identity. https://slimanmansour.com/about-the-artist-sliman-mansour/

Links about Sliman Mansour

Instagram Gallery 

Facebook Page

Wikipedia

  [AS ALWAYS PLEASE GO TO THE LINK TO  see more art or READ GOOD ARTICLES IN FULL: HELP SHAPE ALGORITHMS (and conversations) THAT EMPOWER DECENCY, DIGNITY, JUSTICE & PEACE... and hopefully Palestine, or at least fair and just laws and policies]

World Poetry Day 2025 with a poem by Mosab Abu Toha (of Palestine)

 Mosab Abu Toha

@MosabAbuToha

If we stay in our houses, they bomb us. 

If we shelter in a school, they bomb us. 

If we run to a hospital, they bomb us. 

If we move into a tent, they bomb us. 

If we go to a toilet, they bomb us. 

If we run from an air strike, they bomb us. 

If we do not do any of this, they still bomb us. 

If we stay like a tree, 

or temporarily leave like a leaf in the fall, 

they bomb us. 

But spring will come 

and they, those who bomb us, 

will find no bombs among 

the flowers. 

We will be on the trees bathing in the sun, 

and they, those who bomb us, 

will have no sun, 

no place to rest, 

no legs to run.

 

UNESCO Held every year on 21 March, World Poetry Day celebrates one of humanity’s most treasured forms of cultural and linguistic expression and identity.: Practiced throughout history – in every culture and on every continent – poetry speaks to our common humanity and our shared values, transforming the simplest of poems into a powerful catalyst for dialogue and peace.

From Palestine, a couple on their wedding day, Ramallah in 1928: The Wedding of Shiblie Oudie Shiblie to Jalileh Saleh Shilbie (Samieh)

From Palestine, a couple in the studio on their wedding day, Ramallah in 1928. 

Wedding of Shiblie Oudie Shiblie to Jalileh Saleh Shilbie (Samieh)

تاريخ الدولة العثمانية 

Ottoman Empire

 https://afrppreservationproject.org/photos/wedding-of-shiblie-oudie-shiblie-to-jalileh-saleh-shilbie-samieh/

"Surif is one of the beautiful Palestinian mountain towns located 25 km northwest of the city of Hebron. It also rises about 600 meters above sea level. It is known for its beautiful landscapes, and famous for the cultivation of olives, figs, almonds, grapes, pears, appricots and other fruits." Ibtisam Suleiman

Travel Palestine

Surif is one of the beautiful Palestinian mountain towns located 25 km northwest of the city of Hebron. It also rises about 600 meters above sea level. It is known for its beautiful landscapes, and famous for the cultivation of olives, figs, almonds, grapes, pears, appricots and other fruits.

Ibtisam Suleiman

#landscape #mountains #nature #fruits #cultivation #hebron #palestine

LOVE, DESPITE ALL DIFFICULTIES AND OPPRESSION: We reflected collectively on this theme from the context of our suffering as Palestinian Christian women. We hope to inspire other women around the world to bear with one another in love during troubled times. ...

Art by Halima Aziz created in honor of the World Day of Prayer 2024

 

“I Beg You… Bear With One Another in Love”

Ephesians 4:1-3
March 1, 2024 ​

This program calls us to bear with each other in love, despite all difficulties and oppression. The program was written by a group of ecumenical Christian Palestinian women in response to the passage from Ephesians 4:1-7. We reflected collectively on this theme from the context of our suffering as Palestinian Christian women. We hope to inspire other women around the world to bear with one another in love during troubled times. ​

 https://worlddayofprayer.net/palestine-2024.html

---

History & Culture

Who among you has not heard of this tiny spot in the Middle East, that for over 3000 years has been significant to three monotheistic religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

However, the region is much older and has had many names, depending on the many tribes that have settled at different times in the land. The land has been nourished by an unfolding series of civilizations and structures because of its strategic position as a crossroad to three continents: Asia, Africa and Europe. 

In 1967, when Israel occupied the Palestinian territories, Western powers called the region the West Bank, because it was on the west bank of the Jordan River. After the Oslo Accords of 1993-1995, the West Bank was divided into Areas A, B and C. In order to travel between any of the areas in the West Bank, Palestinians must go through checkpoints. 

As of July 31, 2019, 138 of the 193 United Nations member states have recognized Palestine as a state, and the Palestinian flag now flies outside of the United Nations. 

There is a perception/belief around the world that women in the Middle East region are passive, silent, and non-influential. However, the role of women in Palestine (both historically and in modern times) is active and influential. They are steadfast, strong and courageous.

Although Palestinian women have played an influential role in society, there is still room for better conditions. Recently, some Protestant churches have progressed on gender issues, such as ordaining Sally Azar as the first Palestinian female pastor in Palestine.

About the Art & Artist

Halima Aziz (b.1999 in Hagen, Germany) is a passionate Palestinian visual artist and design student based in Germany. She spent her childhood in Palestine. Halima experienced the war in Gaza in 2008 and survived it. In 2009 she moved back to Germany. 

This artwork is made in honor of the World Day of Prayer. Through her artwork, Halima represents three Palestinian women praying together in nature in a peaceful place. In her work, she has different motives and symbols that indicate the origin of these women and their cohesion​.

Olive trees/ branches are a sign of everlasting and abundant life because they can live for thousands of years. 

The golden roots are underlining the fact that the Palestinians will always exist and as they exist, they will always resist for their rights and freedom. Poppy flowers are abundant and meaningful to Palestinians. They remind Palestinians of loved ones who have given their lives for their country. 

The women are wearing traditional Palestinian dresses like the tatreez (embroidery) thobe (dress) or the white scarf. And the keys are a symbol of the hope to return back to Palestine.

Mosab Abu Toha 's Ceasefire poem January 2025

Because of Us... poem by Emily Berry + Democracy Now "As the WHO warns Gaza’s hospitals are becoming cemeteries, it’s time to heed the poets and the doctors, stop the killing, end the occupation, and dress the open wounds of war."

 

The Undressed Wounds of Gaza

"... The late Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish, as a child, survived the 1948 Nakba, Arabic for “catastrophe,” when 750,000 Palestinians were driven from their homes and 15,000 were killed during Israel’s founding. Darwish lived much of his life in exile and was a critic of Hamas. He wrote in his poem, “To A Young Poet,”

“A poem in a difficult time
is beautiful flowers in a cemetery.”

As the WHO warns Gaza’s hospitals are becoming cemeteries, it’s time to heed the poets and the doctors, stop the killing, end the occupation, and dress the open wounds of war."  https://www.democracynow.org/2023/11/16/the_undressed_wounds_of_gaza

A Rose Shoulders Up- poem fragment by Palestinian Poet Mosab Abu Toha, gracefully illustrated by Hannah Maguire

Illustrated by Hannah Maguire

 

Land Day 2024 Palestine: In 1976 it was 6 unarmed farmers murdered by Israeli forces, this year it is more than 32,704 + Palestinian people murdered by Israeli forces, mostly women & children have been killed

"We have on this earth what makes life worth living"Mahmoud Darwish

 

Every year on March 30, Palestinians observe Land Day, or Yom al-Ard, recalling the events of March 30, 1976, when six unarmed Palestinians were killed and more than 100 injured by Israeli forces during protests against Israel’s confiscation of Palestinian land.

Israel has continued to seize large swaths of Palestinian land, designating them as military zones, state land and other labels.  https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/3/30/land-day-what-happened-in-palestine-in-1976

Settlements – illegal under international law – are Jewish-only communities built on Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.

48 years on and we are witnessing the continuation of this with Israeli attempts at ethnically cleansing Gaza by genocide. #ceasefireNOW 

 

https://twitter.com/miftahpal

https://twitter.com/miftahpal

 @PalMissionUK

Today we mark the 48th anniversary of #LandDay. 

 

Israel’s colonialism never abated and in the occupied West Bank, it has got only worse since 7 Oct 2023:  

 

27,000 acres of land seized  

 

There are 840 checkpoints and barriers aimed at disrupting the Palestinian right to movement  

 

25 Bedouin communities were displaced from their lands  

 

9,600 olive trees uprooted

 

Ahmed Masoud

@masoud_ahmed

Today is #LandDay in Palestine and I managed to get a text from my younger brother Tareq for the 1st time since the Israeli genocide started. His house got bombed in Jabalia and he is now in Rafah in a tent, still hoping to return to the North  #Gaza

 

BDS worldwide- for Palestine  @BDSmovement On the 48th anniversary of Land Day, let’s not just commemorate Israel’s past crimes, but also fight to end its ongoing #GazaGenocide as well as its ongoing Nakba, and, most importantly, to ultimately dismantle its underlying apartheid.

MIFTAH- Free Palestine https://twitter.com/miftahpal

 

Land Day is a day of commemoration of the Palestinian struggle against the Israeli occupation's ethnic cleansing of indigenous Palestinian people.

 

Today marks the 48th anniversary of Land Day.

 

2024 "Of course, for the Palestinians, we did not need an international court to tell us that Israel is committing a genocide, but it was cathartic to hear this acknowledged on a global platform."

Killing the flowers will not delay spring

Date posted: February 01, 2024

By Joharah Baker for MIFTAH

 

& SPEAKING OF HOSTAGES....

9000 Palestinians, including children, are currently held hostage by Israel  - jailed (& tortured) most with out charge or trial  LAND DAY 2024   #Genocide

Daoud Kuttab داود كُتّاب

@daoudkuttab

The number of Palestinians held in Israel jails has reached 9,000 as of March 30th which is celebrated in Palestine as Land Day according to Pa Prisoner club. Since October 7th 7,870 have been detained some were released , most have stayed in jail most without charge or trial