Listening to the voice of the stone
There are some important lessons to be learned from the first intifada, claims Ibrahim Dakkak, one of the authors of a plan to establish an emergency leadership for the Palestinians.

The formulation of a strategy that will enable the Palestinian people to liberate itself from the occupation, to replace institutions and bureaucratic mechanisms in the Palestinian Authority, and to restore the operational capability of the Palestinian civil society - these are the main points of a document entitled "The Palestinian National Initiative," which has been issued by Dr. Haydar Abd al-Shafi, from Gaza, Dr. Mustafa Barghouti, from Ramallah, and the engineer Ibrahim Dakkak, from East Jerusalem. The three, along with other Palestinian intellectuals, including Prof. Edward Said and Prof. Hisham Sharabi, called for the establishment of an emergency national leadership, the holding of democratic elections as soon as possible, and the implementation of reforms that will meet the needs of the Palestinian people.
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Holding a cruel mirror up to Israel
The man who caused the government this week to decide that Zionism requires apartheid once voted for Benjamin Netanyahu, thinking that every child would get a computer.

At the exit to Baka al-Garbiyeh there's a sign in Hebrew and Arabic directing drivers toward Tel Aviv. Someone has splashed white paint over the Arabic letters, erasing them. The message: Arabs - stay in Baka, don't go to Tel Aviv.
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The IDF shuts away the sea at Rafah
by Amira Haas

The entire coast-line between Rafah and Dir al-Balah has been closed to Palestinians. IDF positions, replete with rifles poking out of watchposts, and the occasional jeep or larger army vehicle which races up and down the road, ensure that nobody trespasses beyond clearly demarcated borders. The sea, a natural place of escape from the over-bearing heat and an idyllic leisure spot for children during the summer holiday, has become an inaccessible place visited only in dreams.

It cannot be reached, even though it's only a 10-minute walk, or a two- minute car ride away. Those who have permits remind themselves what the waves are like when they travel up to Gaza City. But these are just a minority of lucky Rafah residents; few have the NIS 14 needed for a round- trip journey.

During recent months, when the IDF has enforced a policy of "cutting-up" and isolating the Gaza Strip, and has blocked movement between northern and southern areas for hours or days, the sea off the Gaza coast has become no more than a memory.
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