State sponsored violence is not the way to convince vulnerable people to veer away from arming religious tyranny and terrorism.

Dear America (letter I just sent to my elected officials)

Support civilization- not bulldozers and bombs destroying homes and farms and families.

Support security for all human beings- not sniper bullets killing children. 

Support the rule of fair and just laws with full respect for universal basic human rights- NOT ISRAEL.

NOT ISRAEL!  Not the way the political entity called Israel has been as it systemically denigrates, displaces, and destroys the indigenous men, women, and children of historic Palestine.

An extensive echo chamber of dangerous Israeli lies and propaganda clouds your thinking and your ability to be fair or wise. Slow down- stop, look and listen. 

I abhor HAMAS and Hezbollah. What they did and do was wrong and evil. Knowing that I also know that state sponsored violence is not the way to convince vulnerable people to veer away from arming religious tyranny and terrorism.

We live in a modern age with computers, maps, books, the internet and citizen journalists with cellphones and so many other advantages, including the tools to shape a just and lasting peace. 

Please stop choosing violence and injustice. 

Listen to the witnesses, listen to the people who know what they are talking about, and think. Think about how you would feel and what you would think if you were a child in an Israeli prison being tortured.

Sincerely,

Anne Selden Annab

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

James J. Zogby: What investment and freedom would have meant for Gaza

 "Yasser Arafat, speaking of Gaza’s future, would say that with investment and freedom from occupation it could become Singapore; if denied both, it could become Somalia. Israel did everything it could to guarantee that Gaza would become Somalia—and they appear to have succeeded."

UNRWA chief confident he is on 'right side of history' Geneva (AFP) – UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini acknowledges that it has been "stressful" leading the embattled UN agency for Palestinian refugees, but says he is confident he is "on the right side of history".

'The violence in the occupied #WestBank is alarming. Since January nearly 40,000 Palestine Refugees have been displaced by air strikes, armoured bulldozers and controlled detonations. People cannot return and the demography of camps is being permanently altered.' - @UNLazzarini

"Letting @UNRWA implode because of the fierce disinformation campaign, the Knesset legislation, and the suspension of funding by key donors will have grave consequences. 

 

 It would create a dangerous vacuum in the occupied Palestinian territory. 

 

It will also send shockwaves through Jordan, Lebanon and #Syria. 

 

This would create an environment in which children are deprived of #education + people lack access to basic services. 

 

Such an environment would be fertile ground for exploitation & extremism. 

 

This is a threat to peace & stability in the region + beyond. 

 

Dismantling UNRWA abruptly will only deepen the suffering of Palestine Refugees, it will not cancel their refugee status."

Dr. Hanan Ashrawi: "Ultimate depravity, entirely unconscionable. How can bombing besieged, starved, helpless families in their sleep be justified by perverted, psychopathic minds? Israel has already slaughtered 50,000 & injured 113,000 victims in Gaza while destroying 75% of all homes & infrastructure using American weapons & funds. Is this the US version of peace?"

Israel continues GENOCIDE in Gaza with massive bombardment after repeated violations of ceasefire... BUT This is what the media manufacturing consent for genocide looks like:

ALL EYES ON PALESTINE: The Israeli military is resuming its all-out assault on Palestinian families in Gaza, drastically escalating its violations of the ceasefire, killing and wounding hundreds. The Israeli military is attacking Palestinians after already relentlessly targeting them after over 17 months of genocide, mass killings, and forced starvation.

‘They lock us in like sheep’: new Israeli checkpoints and barriers raise fears in the West Bank. Israel’s growing network of roadblocks are cutting off communities from major transport routes, disrupting work, education and aid supplies

The US assault on free speech is not going to end with Mahmoud Khalil - Arwa Mahdawi in The Guardian: "It’s 2027 and you’re doom-scrolling in your apartment while eating a single egg for dinner. (Eggs are now $30 a dozen.) You fire off a few angry tweets about abortion rights and go to bed. In the middle of the night armed police break down your door and arrest you for destabilizing the security of the state. You are detained and then – if you hold citizenship elsewhere – deported...."

In Growing Gardens for Palestine: What is Home? a poem by Mosab Abu Toha

Poem A Day - Academy of American Poets @POETSorg Mosab Abu Toha's [You were so small in my hands]

Western Media Whitewashes Genocide... Please follow Assal Rad @AssalRad to see her obvious and honest rewrites of our media's misleading headlines, ommisions, and "scare quotes" when it comes to Israel's war on Palestine

Key context on the Palestinian activist arrested by ICE: I Was a Columbia Student Journalist. Here’s What to Know About Mahmoud Khalil. By Irie Sentner 3/13/2025

"The New York Times, which has warned its writers to not use “words like ‘slaughter,’ ‘massacre’ and ‘carnage’” when reporting on Gaza, the same NYT that has systemically obfuscated the genocide in Gaza, is reporting that Columbia is warning its students not write about Gaza" Mohammed El-Kurd

Mahmoud Khalil: When Speaking for Palestine Becomes a Crime Mahmoud Khalil is a political prisoner and his unlawful detainment is being used to set precedent implementing facisct policies reminiscent of McCarthy Era First Amendment restrictions

Criticizing Israel is not Anti-Semitic. Calling for respect for human rights and the rule of fair and just laws is not Anti-Semitic. Countering the poisonous propaganda of a very foreign rogue nation state that interferes with our elections and our free speech is not Anti-Semitic... Americans should not be funding, arming, and/or excusing Israel in any way, shape, or form.

Please do not demonize and silence or destroy people who speak out peacefully against corruption, injustice, racism, bigotry, and violence of every type.

Please stop fueling corporate corruption, WAR, and escalating suffering for countless men, women, and children.

Israel, armed with American made weaponry and political support, invests in religious extremism and sets up families to be canon fodder for religious wars.... Israel claims to be Jewish, but what it really is is a cruel war machine that has been aggressively grabbing land, rights, and peace from the people of historic Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan.

Hate crimes are escalating here in America with people primed by Zionism to think, say and do horrible things...

Slavery, Segregation and Forced Displacement are wrong. Wrong then and wrong now

My Letters https://anniesnewletters.blogspot.com/search/label/letters

 

"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

Francesca Albanese: Imagine if people stopped telling the Palestinians what to do and instead focused on Israel's LEGAL OBLIGATIONS

Building a Culture of Peace

Diversity, equality, and inclusion

In the aftermath of the ceasefire in Gaza, 1.9 million displaced people urgently need shelter, aid, and psycho-social support.⁣ ⁣UNRWA plays a vital role in fostering stability and resilience during this critical time.

James J. Zogby: What investment and freedom would have meant for Gaza

 "Yasser Arafat, speaking of Gaza’s future, would say that with investment and freedom from occupation it could become Singapore; if denied both, it could become Somalia. Israel did everything it could to guarantee that Gaza would become Somalia—and they appear to have succeeded."

James J. Zogby- president of the Washington-based Arab American Institute, "

What investment and freedom would have meant for Gaza

Mar 18,2025 - Last updated at Mar 18,2025

When I first heard President Donald Trump’s “Gaza Riviera” scheme, it brought back memories of Palestinian hopes three decades ago during the heyday of the Oslo Accords. Back then, I was serving as co-chair of “Builders for Peace,” a project launched by Vice President Al Gore to encourage American businesses to invest in the Palestinian economy to support the fledgling peace process.

My fellow co-chair, Mel Levine, and I led a number of delegations of American business leaders (including Arab Americans and American Jews) to the Palestinian lands. Our first exposure to the problems we would encounter came as we attempted to enter via the Allenby Bridge from Jordan. American Jews and others passed easily, while Arab Americans were separated from the group and forced to undergo humiliating screening.

We convened a session in Jerusalem for Palestinians to meet with Americans interested in investment opportunities, but to enter the city Palestinians had to secure a pass from the occupation authority. The passes only permitted them a few hours in the city, limiting the time they could devote to our discussions.

Entry into and exit from Gaza was equally problematic. One deeply disturbing scene on leaving Gaza has stayed with me. Hundreds of Palestinian men filled what I can only describe as cattle chutes, waiting in the sun for permission to enter into Israel. Straddling these chutes were young Israeli soldiers shouting at the Palestinians below to look down and hold their passes above their heads.

Our meetings with Palestinian business leaders in Gaza and the West Bank were hopeful. They were eager to discuss possibilities with their American counterparts, and the Americans were impressed. A number of partnerships were discussed.

Two projects were notable: one to manufacture leather products, another to assemble furniture. Both sought to take advantage of Gaza’s proximity to Eastern Europe for export. As both projects required that Israel permit import of raw material and export of finished products, both failed. It appeared that Israel might have been willing to entertain such projects, but only if they operated through an Israeli middleman, thereby reducing the ventures’ profitability.... READ MORE   https://www.jordantimes.com/opinion/james-j-zogby/what-investment-and-freedom-would-have-meant-gaza

   [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 ]

UNRWA chief confident he is on 'right side of history' Geneva (AFP) – UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini acknowledges that it has been "stressful" leading the embattled UN agency for Palestinian refugees, but says he is confident he is "on the right side of history".

https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20250317-unrwa-chief-confident-he-is-on-right-side-of-history

  [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 ]

"....  Israel in January took the unprecedented step of severing ties with the UN agency and banning it from operating on Israeli soil.

While UNRWA can still operate in Gaza and the West Bank, it has been barred from contact with Israeli officials, making it difficult to coordinate the safe delivery of aid in the Palestinian territories.

No aid is meanwhile going into Gaza, since Israel halted deliveries to the Strip amid a deadlock over a fragile ceasefire.

"This decision threatens the life and survival of civilians in Gaza," Lazzarini warned.

'Damocles sword'

He also described the situation in the West Bank, where Israel has for weeks been carrying out a major offensive, "deeply, deeply troubling".

While uncertain how things would evolve, he said the threat of an Israeli annexation of the West Bank was hanging like "a Damocles sword over the head of the Palestinians (and) the international community".

Philippe Lazzarini said he feels he is 'on the right side of history' © Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP

Israel has said that UNRWA can be replaced by other UN agencies or NGOs.

But Lazzarini argued that while other organisations could handle distributing humanitarian aid, they could not replace UNRWA's delivery of "government-like services" such as education and healthcare.

Without UNRWA, "we would definitely sacrifice a generation of kids, who would be deprived from proper education", he warned.

'Voiceless'

Education should also be a top priority for Israel, he insisted.

"If you deprive 100,000 girls and boys in Gaza (of an) education, and if they have no future, and if their school is just despair and living in the rubble, I would say we are just sowing the seeds for more extremism."

Israel has for years accused UNRWA schools teaching anti-Semitism and a hatred of Israel.

Lazzarini decried "an extraordinary war of disinformation" against the agency.

Lazzarini, who himself has been the target of virulent attacks, acknowledged that "certainly I don't read everything and don't listen to everything".

"Otherwise you wouldn't sleep anymore."

He added: "If I didn't feel that I am still on the right side of history, I don't think I would continue to carry on."

But, he said, "I have been given a voice, and obviously I need to use this voice".

"That is the minimum we owe to the Palestinian refugees who are pretty voiceless."

'The violence in the occupied #WestBank is alarming. Since January nearly 40,000 Palestine Refugees have been displaced by air strikes, armoured bulldozers and controlled detonations. People cannot return and the demography of camps is being permanently altered.' - @UNLazzarini

#Gaza: Awful scenes of civilians killed among them children following waves of heavy bombardment from Israeli Forces overnight. Fueling “hell on earth” by resuming the war will only bring more despair & suffering. A return to the ceasefire is a must.

'The violence in the occupied #WestBank is alarming. Since January nearly 40,000 Palestine Refugees have been displaced by air strikes, armoured bulldozers and controlled detonations. People cannot return and the demography of camps is being permanently altered.' -

@UNLazzarini

 

Philippe Lazzarini

Mar 10

In Geneva today, I told the press that letting @UNRWA implode because of the fierce disinformation campaign, the Knesset legislation, and the suspension of funding by key donors will have grave consequences. 

 

 It would create a dangerous vacuum in the occupied Palestinian territory. 

 

It will also send shockwaves through Jordan, Lebanon and #Syria. 

 

This would create an environment in which children are deprived of #education + people lack access to basic services. 

 

Such an environment would be fertile ground for exploitation & extremism. 

 

This is a threat to peace & stability in the region + beyond. 

 

Dismantling UNRWA abruptly will only deepen the suffering of Palestine Refugees, it will not cancel their refugee status. 

 

Alternatively, UNRWA can be supported to progressively conclude its mandate within the framework of a political process leading to empowered & prepared Palestinian institutions within the “two-State solution”. 

 

https://www.unrwa.org/newsroom/official-statements/press-remarks-unrwa-commissioner-general-philippe-lazzarini-0

Press remarks by UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini

10 March 2025

GENEVA

---

It has been almost 10 days since the State of Israel banned the entry of humanitarian aid and commercial supplies into the Gaza Strip.  

Somehow a situation similar to the one which prevailed in October 2023. This decision threatens the lives and survival of civilians in Gaza, who have had only a brief respite from 16 months of brutal war.   

The ceasefire agreement has shown that whenever there is a political will, humanitarian assistance can be unhindered and un-interrupted. Between the beginning of the cease fire and 2 March, humanitarian assistance has increased 10 folds.

It is critical that humanitarian aid is allowed into Gaza again, to maintain the progress made during the first phase of the ceasefire and meet people’s basic needs.   

I echo the call of the Secretary General for the immediate, unconditional, and dignified release of all hostages, the dignified release of Palestinian detainees as previously agreed, and for the ceasefire to hold.

It is important also to shed light on the situation in the West Bank. In the West Bank the operation by the Israeli Security Forces, which started six weeks ago, is severely impacting Palestinians, especially in the north. Palestinian armed groups are also increasingly active in the area.

Several refugee camps have been nearly emptied, displacing around 40,000 Palestine Refugees. 

This is the largest displacement of Palestinians in the West Bank since 1967.

The large-scale demolition of buildings, including residential areas is alarming. People have nowhere to return to.

UNRWA continues to track displaced people and provide humanitarian aid, including food, healthcare and basic items. 

In Syria, we have witnessed over the last few days terrible violence. One of our staff was also tragically caught up in the crossfire. We continue, in the country, to provide healthcare and education, which for many Palestine Refugees are absolutely essential to their survival.

In Lebanon, socioeconomic crises have increased the reliance of Palestine Refugees on UNRWA services. We just did a survey, and we have seen that the UNRWA cash assistance to Palestine Refugees has become one of the main sources of income for 70 percent of Palestine Refugees in the country.  

Now, about the Knesset laws. The Knesset legislation I briefed the Member States on is not just about UNRWA. This is about any individual or organisation calling for adherence to international humanitarian law or promoting the rights of Palestinians.

While a number of International NGOs have already been silenced, there is now a larger, concerted effort in Israel to undermine, or restrict through legislative measures, the operations of international organisations and NGOs.

The Agency has faced serious operational challenges since the Israeli parliament’s anti-UNRWA legislation came into force at the end of January.

In occupied East Jerusalem, the Agency is facing increased pressure from the municipality to vacate premises and end service provision.

International staff have been effectively expelled from the occupied West Bank due to the lack of valid visas.

While some international staff remain in Gaza, Israel refuses to facilitate their entry or exit via Kerem Shalom.

Despite these challenges, UNRWA will stay and deliver its General Assembly mandate until it is no longer possible to do so in a principled manner.

For example:

• Since the ceasefire began in Gaza, UNRWA has provided food to 2 million people, opened nearly 40 new emergency shelters, and provided over 60,000 people with tents.  
• UNRWA health teams supported the polio vaccination campaign last month reaching nearly 200,000 children below the age of 10.  
• Through temporary learning spaces and remote learning, UNRWA is reaching children with education.  As an anecdote we have opened registration for distance learning for the children in Gaza at the beginning of January. Three weeks later we had more than 250,000 children having registered. Today, 70 per cent of them are having distance learning through the digital platform.
• In the West Bank, nearly 50,000 children go to the Agency’s schools and hundreds of thousands of people rely on our health services.

I must highlight again the disinformation campaign portraying the Agency as a terrorist organisation, and our staff as terrorists or terrorist sympathizers.

I do believe that, talking to an audience of journalists, checking facts and reporting through firsthand, official sources is the foundation of independent reporting and key to countering this vicious campaign.

This is especially critical given the prolonged ban on independent, international media in Gaza.    There has been no independent international media in Gaza since October 2023.

I continue to urge you - the international media - to do more to get into Gaza to cover untold stories and verify information.  I asked the same to Member States: to help journalists to get access into Gaza.

On funding, UNRWA’s financial situation – you would be surprised should I tell you that everything is under control – is critical and precarious.  Cashflow is managed monthly, and we urgently require additional financial support if the Agency is to survive.

To conclude, this is a time of tremendous geopolitical uncertainty.

For UNRWA, the status quo is no longer an option.  We have a choice to make.

We can allow the Agency to implode due to the fierce disinformation campaign; the Knesset legislation; and the suspension of funding by key donors.

• Collapse would create a dangerous vacuum in the occupied Palestinian territory and send shockwaves through Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.
• An environment in which children are deprived of education, and people lack access to basic services, is fertile ground for exploitation and extremism.
• This is a threat to peace and stability in the region and beyond.

Alternatively, UNRWA can be supported to progressively conclude its mandate within the framework of a political process like that championed by Saudi Arabia, the European Union, and the League of Arab States through the Global Alliance for the Implementation of the Two-State Solution.

The Agency, would this be the case, would then gradually transition its public-like services to empowered and prepared Palestinian institutions.

This would preserve the rights of Palestine Refugees and their access to basic services.

I have also repeatedly stressed that dismantling the Agency abruptly will only deepen the suffering of Palestine Refugees, but it will not cancel their refugee status.  The rights of Palestine Refugees exist independently of the Agency.  

If UNRWA ceases to protect and assist Palestine Refugees, their rights will not only remain, but there will be much greater emphasis on the right to return or to be resettled, for which UNRWA has no mandate.

So, to conclude, the main ask to Member States has been: sustain UNRWA until the political direction of travel is clear. That is, until the international community considers the political pathway proposed by Arab States through the recovery and reconstruction plan outlined in the Cairo Declaration, and the proposal of the Global Alliance for the Implementation of the Two-State Solution.

Thank you.

 

Background Information: 

 

 UNRWA is the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East. The United Nations General Assembly established UNRWA in 1949 with a mandate to provide humanitarian assistance and protection to registered Palestine refugees in the Agency’s area of operations pending a just and lasting solution to their plight.

UNRWA operates in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, The Gaza Strip, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. 

Tens of thousands of Palestine refugees who lost their homes and livelihoods due to the 1948 conflict continue to be displaced and in need of support, nearly 75 years on.

UNRWA helps Palestine Refugees achieve their full potential in human development through quality services it provides in education, health care, relief and social services, protection, camp infrastructure and improvement, microfinance, and emergency assistance. UNRWA is funded almost entirely by voluntary contributions.

Your support is crucial to help us provide emergency aid 
to displaced families in Gaza

Dr. Hanan Ashrawi: "Ultimate depravity, entirely unconscionable. How can bombing besieged, starved, helpless families in their sleep be justified by perverted, psychopathic minds? Israel has already slaughtered 50,000 & injured 113,000 victims in Gaza while destroying 75% of all homes & infrastructure using American weapons & funds. Is this the US version of peace?"

Hanan Ashrawi

@DrHananAshrawi

 

 Ultimate depravity, entirely unconscionable. 

 

How can bombing besieged, starved, helpless families in their sleep be justified by perverted, psychopathic minds? 

 

Israel has already slaughtered 50,000 & injured 113,000 victims in Gaza while destroying 75% of all homes & infrastructure using American weapons & funds. 

 

Is this the US version of peace?

Israel continues GENOCIDE in Gaza with massive bombardment after repeated violations of ceasefire... BUT This is what the media manufacturing consent for genocide looks like:

Assal Rad

@AssalRad

This is what the media manufacturing consent for genocide looks like. “Israel continues GENOCIDE in Gaza with massive bombardment after repeated violations of ceasefire,” that’s your headline.

ALL EYES ON PALESTINE: The Israeli military is resuming its all-out assault on Palestinian families in Gaza, drastically escalating its violations of the ceasefire, killing and wounding hundreds. The Israeli military is attacking Palestinians after already relentlessly targeting them after over 17 months of genocide, mass killings, and forced starvation.

Jewish Voice for Peace

@jvplive

ALL EYES ON PALESTINE: The Israeli military is resuming its all-out assault on Palestinian families in Gaza, drastically escalating its violations of the ceasefire, killing and wounding hundreds. 

 

The Israeli military is attacking Palestinians after already relentlessly targeting them after over 17 months of genocide, mass killings, and forced starvation

‘They lock us in like sheep’: new Israeli checkpoints and barriers raise fears in the West Bank. Israel’s growing network of roadblocks are cutting off communities from major transport routes, disrupting work, education and aid supplies

Palestinians living in the West Bank passing through the Qalandiya military checkpoint separating Ramallah and Jerusalem for the first Friday prayer of Ramadan. Photograph: Issam Rimawi/Anadolu/Getty Images

Jason Burke and Sufian Taha, in the occupied West Bank

Sat 15 Mar 2025 12.09 EDT

The road to Atara from Ramallah winds through the hills and valleys of the occupied W est Bank. To drive the nine miles to the village from the de facto capital of the Palestinian Authority should take about half an hour, despite the potholes and traffic.

These days, the taxi drivers waiting for fares on Radio Street in the north of the city shrug when asked when they will arrive at their destination.

“Thirty minutes, one hour, half a day, it all depends on the checkpoints. If I could tell you, I would … but no one knows,” said Ahmed Barghouti, 50, a driver for over 20 years.

Since the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas came into effect in Gaza in January, life for the 2.9 million Palestinians in the West Bank has not become easier. Israel immediately launched a bloody major offensive in the north that has so far forced at least 40,000 people from their homes, the largest displacement since Israel’s occupation began in 1967, and killed dozens, including children.

At the same time, Israeli authorities have been constructing new checkpoints and barriers. According to the Palestinian Authority, at least 119 “iron gates” have been set up since the start of the war in Gaza in October 2023, including many since January. These block access to villages and towns, cutting off entire communities from major transport routes.

There are now close to 900 barriers in the West Bank, the PA said. The UN has recorded more than 800, a steep increase on the 645 in 2023.

Palestinian officials say this “localised system” of roadblocks is a change from a strategy merely to cut the West Bank into north, south and central sections. “It no longer controls movement alone, but also … access to ­agricultural land, social and livelihood opportunities, health, education and the economy, among other things,” Amir Daoud, of the Authority’s Colonisation and Wall Resistance Committee, told the Observer.

A survey last month of NGOs working in the West Bank found that 93% said roadblocks, permit denials and checkpoint delays hindered aid delivery... READ MORE  https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/mar/15/israeli-checkpoints-barriers-raise-fears-in-the-west-bank

  [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 ]

The US assault on free speech is not going to end with Mahmoud Khalil - Arwa Mahdawi in The Guardian: "It’s 2027 and you’re doom-scrolling in your apartment while eating a single egg for dinner. (Eggs are now $30 a dozen.) You fire off a few angry tweets about abortion rights and go to bed. In the middle of the night armed police break down your door and arrest you for destabilizing the security of the state. You are detained and then – if you hold citizenship elsewhere – deported...."

Protesters rally in support of the detained Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil outside Columbia University in New York on Friday. Photograph: Jason DeCrow/AP

The US assault on free speech is not going to end with Mahmoud Khalil

Arwa Mahdawi

The significance of the Trump administration’s arrest and threat to deport the Palestinian activist cannot be overstated

Sat 15 Mar 2025 09.00 EDT

Last modified on Sat 15 Mar 2025 09.02 EDT

First, they came for Mahmoud Khalil

It’s 2027 and you’re doom-scrolling in your apartment while eating a single egg for dinner. (Eggs are now $30 a dozen.) You fire off a few angry tweets about abortion rights and go to bed. In the middle of the night armed police break down your door and arrest you for destabilizing the security of the state. You are detained and then – if you hold citizenship elsewhere – deported.

Not so long that sort of scenario happening in the US, where the first amendment protects free speech, would have been implausible. Now, however? It’s creeping closer. As I write this, the Columbia University graduate Mahmoud Khalil is in immigration detention after being arrested and marked for deportation because of his pro-Palestinian activism.

Green card holders can normally only be stripped of their immigration status if they have been convicted of a crime, which Khalil has not. But the Trump administration is rooting around to find any possible excuse to deport Khalil and make an example of him. Earlier this week, Donald Trump called Khalil’s arrest the first “of many to come”, and said he would deport students he said engage in “pro-terrorist, antisemitic, anti-American activity”. And let’s be very clear here: doing anything in support of Palestinians – or simply existing as a Palestinian – seems enough to count as being “pro-terrorist, antisemitic, [and] anti-American” for Trump, who has repeatedly used the word “Palestinian” as a slur.

The significance... READ MORE  https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/mar/15/mahmoud-khalil-free-speech-civil-liberties

 [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 ]