Algeria

Israeli soldier mourn beside flowers placed on the grave of Israeli border policewoman, Hadar Cohen, 19, during her funeral at the military cemetery in Yehud, near Tel Aviv, Israel, February 4, 2016. Three Palestinians killed the Israeli border policewoman and wounded another before being shot dead by nearby officers at Damascus gate IN Jerusalem's Old City on February 3, 2016. (Activestills.org)

Why do we only listen to violence?

Two intifadas increased Israeli willingness to make territorial withdrawals. Wars in Lebanon and Egypt led Israel to withdrawals from those territories. Despite all that, the Palestinian Authority is trying to maintain quiet and security for Israelis but receives nothing in return. If I were Palestinian I might come to a disturbing conclusion. One axiom of…

By Noam Sheizaf March 10, 2016

French soldiers capture FLN fighters in Algeria, 1958. (Author unknown)

No, Mr. Netanyahu, answers to terrorism are not all the same

The prime minister compares Israel’s predicament with the Palestinians to France’s current one with jihadists, but the true comparison is to France’s struggle with Algeria in the 1950s and early 1960s. In Paris early this week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu drove home a message he’s been delivering for decades: “Israel supports Europe in its fight…

By Larry Derfner January 16, 2015

Re-learning history: A tribute to North Africa’s Jewish artists

Though often forgotten in Israel today, some of North Africa’s biggest cultural assets were in fact Jewish. Meet the stars who shaped Maghrebi music, from the classical to the contemporary. By Ophir Toubul ‘There arose the idea of taking people who have nothing in common. The one lot comes from the highest culture there is…

By Cafe Gibraltar October 9, 2014

Latest

Palestinians from Shejaiya area flee their homes and look for shelter in Gaza city following a large-scale Israeli attack on their neighborhood, Gaza City, July 20, 2014. Spokesman of the Palestinian ministry of health Ashraf al-Qidra said rescue teams evacuated more than 80 dead bodies from destroyed houses in Shejaiya including 17 children, 14 women and 4 elderly people. More than 200 injured people were taken to al-Shifa Hospital. Death toll in the Gaza Strip accedes 392 with over 2650 wounded since the beginning of the Israeli offensive. (photo: Anne Paq / activestills)

When will we get it? Palestinians are fighting for their freedom

We consider ourselves a nation that just wants to live in peace, but it’s about time we realize that for Palestinians the siege and the occupation are a constant state of war. This article is a translation from Hebrew of my Time Out Tel Aviv column from July 31. Not one of our wars was one of our…

By Noam Sheizaf August 1, 2014

Ariel Sharon and Charles de Gaulle

Sharon was no De Gaulle

To get out of the West Bank Israel needs a politician with the energy and reputation of Sharon and the political skills of De Gaulle. Whether such a figure exists is a different story. By Thomas Mitchell Ariel Sharon was Israel’s most politically successful military politician. His political career was a full decade longer than those…

By +972 Magazine January 20, 2014

Umm Kulthum. (photo: WIkicommons)

From Umm Kulthum to Woody Guthrie: Thoughts on cultural sovereignty

For an Israeli who has only known occupied, subdued and desperate Middle Eastern cities, there is something exciting about rediscovering the cultural world of a confident, proud Levant, cognizant of its traditions and histories. By Amos Noy (translated by Matan Kaminer) To ‘Amar, with fond remembrance. Between the demand for “authenticity,” which, while conscious of itself,…

By Cafe Gibraltar May 10, 2013