Press Releases

Available now: al-majdal, BADIL English-language quarterly, issue no. 34 (Summer 2007): 40 Years of Occupation of the OPT, 60 Years of Nakba

 For Immediate Release

No. (E/15/07)

30 July 2007


 

 

Bethlehem, July 2007: BADIL Resource Center announces the release of the Summer 2007 issue of al-majdal English-language quarterly magazine, which focuses on the 40/60 Call to Action. The 40/60 Call to Action is an appeal from displaced Palestinians to global civil society to address the root causes of 60 years of conflict between Israel and the Palestinian people and to join the effort for a new principled vision and struggle.

 

Commentary and analysis in this issue focuses on recent political developments and the consequences of these developments for the Palestinian political system shaped by the Oslo accords. In particular, writers examine the basis for the failure of the National Unity Government and the events following the downfall of that administration.

 

The latest issue of al-majdal pays particular attention to the Nakba, with writers arguing that it has become a powerful symbol of the continued plight of the Palestinain people, representing, as it does, the quest for justice, redress, and the right of return.  To this end, reports of the popular commemoration in the OPT of this year's 59th anniversary of the Nakba, a potrayal of refugees in the media and various personal recollections of the Nakba that highlight the historical significance of this event and its place in Palestinian consciousness are featured.

 

Elsewhere, other writers examine the Nakba as an ongoing event. Here, reports and analysis of the recent armed conflict in the Nahr al-Bared refugee camp in Lebanon, the continued suffering of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon and Iraq, and an account of the efforts of the Palestinian villagers of Artas (Bethlehem) to resist the illegal confiscation of their land, underline the continued vulnerability and hardship faced by displaced Palestinians.

 

The 40/60 Call to Action issue also represents a call for expanding the global Campaign for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) against Israel until it complies with international law. An update of recent developments in the global BDS Campaign is included in the documents section.

 


A PDF version of al-majdal is available at: http://www.badil.org/al-majdal/al-majdal.htm

Annual subscriptions are available online (www.badil.org) or from [email protected] for Euro 25 (for four issues).