Dove's Eye View

Turkey sending envoy to Israel for Syria talks

Colonel Patrick Lang alerts us to this development: Turkey plans to send envoy to Israel for Syria talks.

Turkey is planning to send an emissary to Jerusalem in an attempt to find a compromise that would pave the way of peace talks between Syria and Israel, as it played down the high expectations saying there is a long way to go.

Israel's Haaretz said on Monday Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan plans to send an emissary to Jerusalem to brief Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on his recent talks with Assad in Damascus. Erdogan will apparently send his foreign policy advisor Ahmet Davutoglu, who is also in charge of talks with Syria and has in the past met with Olmert adviser, Yoram Turbowicz, in Ankara, it reported.

Israeli officials believe Turkey's involvement in the issue will increase. "Erdogan has decided to go all the way on the issue of Israel and Syria," the Israeli government source told Haaretz.

The source added that Israel has not yet received an update on Erdogan's talks in Damascus. "Talks are being conducted to chart out the issue," the source said. "The goal of Turkey's activity is to allow talks to start. That's how we view it. So far, no real negotiations are taking place."

Turkey has been mediating between Syria and Israel to restart peace talks. Israel and Syria's last round of direct talks broke down in 2000 over the details of Israel's proposed withdrawal from the Golan.

Syria has said it received word from Turkey that Israel would be willing to give back the Golan in return for peace with the Arab state.

Peace can arise from any direction.

In Syrian Villages, the Language of Jesus Lives

My dad often spoke of this: In Syrian Villages, the Language of Jesus Lives - New York Times.

When he was growing up in Lebanon, my father's church still used Aramaic in the liturgy, so he knew some psalms and prayers in that language. He was very proud of his connection to that ancient world and spoke often of those villages in Syria where they still used Aramaic.

The article strikes certain sour Orientalist notes - "a vestige of an older and more diverse Middle East that existed before the arrival of Islam" - excuse me, the Middle East has continued to be diverse throughout 1300 years of Islam, so get over yourself. And the little explanation about a man named John Francis "western names are common in Syria and Lebanon." Oh please. Where do you think the names John and Francis come from anyway? Read your Bible, mister. The guy who gave you his name probably goes by Hanna Francis but he said John, the English form of Hanna, for your benefit.

Carter: Hamas is willing to accept Israel as its neighbor

There it is: Carter: Hamas is willing to accept Israel as its neighbor - Yahoo! News.

Former President Carter said Monday that Hamas — the Islamic militant group that has called for the destruction of Israel — is prepared to accept the right of the Jewish state to "live as a neighbor next door in peace."

But Carter warned that there would not be peace if Israel and the U.S. continue to shut out Hamas and its main backer, Syria.

The Democratic former president relayed the message in a speech in Jerusalem after meeting last week with top Hamas leaders in Syria. It capped a nine-day visit to the Mideast aimed at breaking the deadlock between Israel and Hamas militants who rule the Gaza Strip.

"They (Hamas) said that they would accept a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, if approved by Palestinians and that they would accept the right of Israel to live as a neighbor next door in peace," Carter said.

The buzz on the internet and from my cousins with Lebanese army connections: war, war, war.

Carter's visit shows that peace is always possible. No war could solve any real problem this summer. We need sane leaders to pull the bloodthirsty back from the brink.

Update: The New York Times elaborates.

Also, regarding war, war and more war, see Joshua Landis at Syria Comment. He reprints a long analysis of the prospects for war, but Josh himself states at the outset that he thinks it won't come to that. Too costly, too little benefit to anybody. My hopeful self believes that cooler heads will prevail.

Mohja Kahf Appearing in East Bay next week

Syrian-American poet and writer Mohja Kahf (also a professor of comparative literature at U. Arkansas) will be
making several appearances next week in Berkeley and Oakland. I can't guarantee you'll see her posed like this; I took this picture last year when she honored me with a visit. Here is her schedule:

Wednesday March 19, 3 pm; talk/reading at the Poetry for the People, UC Berkeley.

Then an AMILA reading at a cafe (the amila announcement is below) Wednesday at 7pm.

Location: Mudraker's Cafe, 2801 Telegraph Avenue
Berkeley, CA 94701 (510) 649-7315

Thursday, March 20, 12 noon; poetry reading at Mills College, 5000 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland, followed by reception

Thursday at 7:30 pm, reading at La Peña in Berkeley, 3105 Shattuck Avenue (just south of Ashby).

More on the AMILA gathering below:

March AMILA Gathering: Poetry Reading with Dr. Mohja
Kahf

Wednesday, March 19th @7pm: Dr. Mohja Kahf was born in Damascus, Syria and was raised in Utah, Indiana, and New Jersey. She received her doctorate from Rutgers University in Comparative Literature and currently teaches at the University of Arkansas. Her first book, 'Western Representations of the Muslim Woman' (UT Press, 1999), explores the image of Muslim women in medieval and Renaissance European literature. Her collection of poems, Emails from Sheherezade is widely read and has become a must-read in courses on Women and Islam. Her novel, 'The Girl in a Tangerine Scarf' (2006) was just announced Book of the Year in Bloomington, Indiana.

Mohja Kahf's poetry has been published in literary anthologies and journals since the early 1990s, recently appearing in The Paris Review and The Atlanta Review. She has competed in the National Poetry Slam Chicago, 1999) and in 2002, she received an Arkansas Arts Council grant for literary achievement.

Bay Area AMILA helped birth one of her first creative projects when Mohja wrote a play called 'The Muhajjaba on the Motorcycle', which was produced and performed by AMILA members in the early 1990s. She has presented other work at AMILA events, including her dissertation on the image of Muslim women in European
literature, as well as her story, 'Lost Pages from Bukhari'. We will continue this tradition and feature her latest work at this upcoming gathering.

March 12, 2008 in My America, Syria, Writing and Literature | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Syrian-American poet and writer Mohja Kahf (also a professor of comparative literature at U. Arkansas) will be
making several appearances next week in Berkeley and Oakland. I can't guarantee you'll see her posed like this; I took this picture last year when she honored me with a visit. Here is her schedule:

Wednesday March 19, 3 pm; talk/reading at the Poetry for the People, UC Berkeley.

Then an AMILA reading at a cafe (the amila announcement is below) Wednesday at 7pm.

Location: Mudraker's Cafe, 2801 Telegraph Avenue
Berkeley, CA 94701 (510) 649-7315

Thursday, March 20, 12 noon; poetry reading at Mills College, 5000 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland, followed by reception

Thursday at 7:30 pm, reading at La Peña in Berkeley, 3105 Shattuck Avenue (just south of Ashby).

More on the AMILA gathering below:

March AMILA Gathering: Poetry Reading with Dr. Mohja
Kahf

Wednesday, March 19th @7pm: Dr. Mohja Kahf was born in Damascus, Syria and was raised in Utah, Indiana, and New Jersey. She received her doctorate from Rutgers University in Comparative Literature and currently teaches at the University of Arkansas. Her first book, 'Western Representations of the Muslim Woman' (UT Press, 1999), explores the image of Muslim women in medieval and Renaissance European literature. Her collection of poems, Emails from Sheherezade is widely read and has become a must-read in courses on Women and Islam. Her novel, 'The Girl in a Tangerine Scarf' (2006) was just announced Book of the Year in Bloomington, Indiana.

Mohja Kahf's poetry has been published in literary anthologies and journals since the early 1990s, recently appearing in The Paris Review and The Atlanta Review. She has competed in the National Poetry Slam Chicago, 1999) and in 2002, she received an Arkansas Arts Council grant for literary achievement.

Bay Area AMILA helped birth one of her first creative projects when Mohja wrote a play called 'The Muhajjaba on the Motorcycle', which was produced and performed by AMILA members in the early 1990s. She has presented other work at AMILA events, including her dissertation on the image of Muslim women in European
literature, as well as her story, 'Lost Pages from Bukhari'. We will continue this tradition and feature her latest work at this upcoming gathering.

Who wrote this, and in what newspaper? Rattling the Cage: What Israeli aggression?.

...countries aren't supposed to fly their jets into another country's airspace without permission. It's considered an invasion. An act of aggression. It gives the invaded country a casus belli - a justification to strike back.

In short, it's wrong. It's the sort of thing that starts wars, and countries are supposed to try to avoid wars, not start them.

So Israeli leaders have nothing to say about the Syrian reports. This is the diplomatic equivalent of a wink. Everyone understands.

What's hard to understand, though, is how the Israeli media can be so docile, so obedient, in the face of such a reckless Israeli act. I was watching Channel 2 Thursday night, and I couldn't believe what I was hearing, or rather not hearing.

None of the journalists, who clearly assumed that this incident had really taken place, thought it worth mentioning that Israel had just risked starting a war with Syria. None of them challenged Israeli officials on the wisdom of this. All they talked about was what Syria might do now, whether Syria would go to war. That Israel had just provoked Syria, had just escalated the conflict, was the elephant in the newsroom that they pretended not to see.

That would be Larry Derfner, known "lackey for the Syrian government," writing in that "pro-Assad propaganda rag," the Jerusalem Post.

Hat tip to Josh Landis, a loyal American and respected professor of Syria Studies.

So you think you "know" who is responsible for the war in Nahr al-Bared? You read the New York Times, the AP News wire, and plenty of Lebanese Forces websites? Syria is behind it all, you say, because the New York Times said so.

Here is Seymour Hersh, veteran American journalist who writes for the New Yorker, interviewed on CNN: Bush Administration arranged support for militants attacking Lebanon.

Dear folks: I don't claim to know the truth. But better intelligence analysts than I, including some very conservative, American military historians, endorse this scenario. It sounds crazy to you because the mainstream press tells a different story.

At least read it so you have the alternate view.

Remember, we told you there were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, too. Do you want America to go to war with Syria because of false propaganda? Do you think our military can handle another mini-Iraq? Then you owe it to yourselves to read the links.

More little signs of hope: Israel relays new message to Syria.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has relayed a new message to Syria about the possibility of renewing peace talks between the two countries, an Israeli newspaper reported on Tuesday.

The report carried by the Haaretz daily came after Israeli officials confirmed in the past few days that the Jewish state was using secret channels to test whether talks that stalled in 2000 could proceed anew.

Read the Haaretz report here.

Well, this is hopeful: Israel tells Syria willing to return Golan.

An Israeli newspaper said on Friday that Israel has told Syria it is prepared to withdraw from the Golan Heights in return for lasting peace, adding to growing signals that Israel is looking to resume negotiations.

Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper said Prime Minister Ehud Olmert had sent messages through foreign envoys to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad that Israel is ready to "fulfill its part" in a peace deal, even if it means giving up the strategic Golan Heights, captured in the Six Day War of June 1967.

There are no military solutions to these questions - only diplomatic ones.

Is Israeli Aggression Wrong?

Who wrote this, and in what newspaper? Rattling the Cage: What Israeli aggression?.

...countries aren't supposed to fly their jets into another country's airspace without permission. It's considered an invasion. An act of aggression. It gives the invaded country a casus belli - a justification to strike back.

In short, it's wrong. It's the sort of thing that starts wars, and countries are supposed to try to avoid wars, not start them.

So Israeli leaders have nothing to say about the Syrian reports. This is the diplomatic equivalent of a wink. Everyone understands.

What's hard to understand, though, is how the Israeli media can be so docile, so obedient, in the face of such a reckless Israeli act. I was watching Channel 2 Thursday night, and I couldn't believe what I was hearing, or rather not hearing.

None of the journalists, who clearly assumed that this incident had really taken place, thought it worth mentioning that Israel had just risked starting a war with Syria. None of them challenged Israeli officials on the wisdom of this. All they talked about was what Syria might do now, whether Syria would go to war. That Israel had just provoked Syria, had just escalated the conflict, was the elephant in the newsroom that they pretended not to see.

That would be Larry Derfner, known "lackey for the Syrian government," writing in that "pro-Assad propaganda rag," the Jerusalem Post.

Hat tip to Josh Landis, a loyal American and respected professor of Syria Studies.

For My Relatives

So you think you "know" who is responsible for the war in Nahr al-Bared? You read the New York Times, the AP News wire, and plenty of Lebanese Forces websites? Syria is behind it all, you say, because the New York Times said so.

Here is Seymour Hersh, veteran American journalist who writes for the New Yorker, interviewed on CNN: Bush Administration arranged support for militants attacking Lebanon.

Dear folks: I don't claim to know the truth. But better intelligence analysts than I, including some very conservative, American military historians, endorse this scenario. It sounds crazy to you because the mainstream press tells a different story.

At least read it so you have the alternate view.

Remember, we told you there were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, too. Do you want America to go to war with Syria because of false propaganda? Do you think our military can handle another mini-Iraq? Then you owe it to yourselves to read the links.

Israel relays new message to Syria

More little signs of hope: Israel relays new message to Syria.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has relayed a new message to Syria about the possibility of renewing peace talks between the two countries, an Israeli newspaper reported on Tuesday.

The report carried by the Haaretz daily came after Israeli officials confirmed in the past few days that the Jewish state was using secret channels to test whether talks that stalled in 2000 could proceed anew.

Read the Haaretz report here.

Israel tells Syria willing to return Golan

Well, this is hopeful: Israel tells Syria willing to return Golan.

An Israeli newspaper said on Friday that Israel has told Syria it is prepared to withdraw from the Golan Heights in return for lasting peace, adding to growing signals that Israel is looking to resume negotiations.

Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper said Prime Minister Ehud Olmert had sent messages through foreign envoys to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad that Israel is ready to "fulfill its part" in a peace deal, even if it means giving up the strategic Golan Heights, captured in the Six Day War of June 1967.

There are no military solutions to these questions - only diplomatic ones.