Barak Ravid hears unhappy mutterings from Israel’s ambassadors; they can’t answer the questions about reports of right-wing and religious attacks on the country’s democracy – though they congratulate themselves on stopping the flotilla and UN recognition for Palestine

‘Anti-normalization is one of the hottest topics in the Palestinian community’ writes Aziz Abu Sarah who opposes the strategy as going along with Israel’s rule by separation of Arab and Jew; PACBI defends the policy as refusing ‘colonisation of the mind’ and preventing any appearance of Israel as a ‘normal’ state

Carlo Strenger, liberal commentator on Haaretz, declares 2011 the year the two-state solution died. He takes hope from the community who share his values and will continue, at least, to stand for civil and human rights and stop their further erosion in Israel

Like Carlo Strenger (above) Palestinian American and Jpost columnist Ray Hanania despairs of leaders or ‘extremists’ making peace; he launched the Yalla peace party “to promote peace based on two-states non-violence and compromise”.

EU members of the UN Security Council call on Israeli government to halt the devastating effects of building settlements and of escalating settler violence and asks for political leadership on both sides. Israel responds with ‘outrage’ at European assault

Marwan Barghouti, the popular Palestinian leader, has been in prison since 2002 for his alleged role in the second intifada. It is widely assumed that he was not freed in the prisoner swap because the official Palestinian leadership regard him as a threat to their authority. Joseph Dana describes this complex man who has supported non-violent and violent resistance but always ia commitment to intellectual work

High Court rules that Israel’s ‘unique’ occupation allows it to transgress international law on the fruits of the land, thus enriching Israel but impoverishing its own status as an upholder of law and justice

On the third anniversary of Operation Cast Lead, Israel’s deady onslaught on Gaza, the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights publishes a series of stories about some of those killed, maimed, bereavd. Here we post the first two.

At Rosh Hashanah – Jewish New Year – 2011 the Jewish Chronicle gathered 5 people for a discussion on being Jewish in Britain. For our coming secular New Year, we post this round-table which ranges, calmly and crossly, over identity, Israel, God, anti-semitism, parenthood, judgmentalism, Palestine, the diaspora and much else.

President Shimon Peres has added his voice to the thousands who have rallied in defence of the right of girls and women to move and mix freely in public space. Like the settlers, the Haredim are now using violence against police as well as neighbours they disapprove of in order to get their own rule enforced.

Israel’s minister for information, who is active in the Inter-parliamentary Coalition for Combating Antisemitism, has denounced all Arabs as deplorable, damaged, worthless. Ben White reports, Yossie Gurvitz adds and definitions of a few words are offered

Hannah Arendt, 1906-75, was a rare philosopher who combined deep grounding in the classics with an acute and lively appreciation of contemporary politics, 1st. Her sceptical inquiries into Zionism, Israel, nationalism, what constitutes a people remain provocative as shown in Judith Butler’s review of her Jewish Writings, 2nd

The uniqueness of the holocaust of Jews in Europe has long been the mainstay of Israeli ideology, beyond discussion or comparison. Now the Knesset is considering appointing another holocaust memorial day – for the Armenian people systematically killed by Turks 1915-18. Why? because Turkey is Israel’s ‘new enemy says Richard Silverstein.

In a interview with AP, Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal (or Meshal) speaks in favour of two-state soution and the ‘tsunami’ power of non-v iolent popular protest. The interview took place in Cairo where Hamas and Fatah are having unity talks

At huge expene Israel is creating a new map of the West Bank through separate Israeli/Paleinian roads and checkpoints. The hub of the new lines of division is Jerusalem whose Palestinian residents will now come under the authority of the Civil Administration instead of the Jerusalem muicipality.

Jews for Justice for Palestinians greet all our readers at this festive season and hope that it will usher in a time of peace and justice for all

Hannukkah or Chanukah, the festival of lights commemorating the rededication of the temple in Jerusalem in 165 BCE after the Maccabees’ victory over the Greeks, and conveniently close to Christmas, prompts some iconoclastic, critical, devotional and comic responses. Anshel Pfeffer, Robert Cohen and Anon.

A Jerusalem court last Thursday ruled against the claim by Elad, a settler organisation, that Palestinian homes in E. Jerusalem belonged to them. Besides this small victory, property seizures and demolitions continue to make space for, amongst othr things, car parking and a new Israeli National Security College

In an assessment of Hamas at 24, Ramzy Baroud ponders the dilemma for an organisation whose popularity depends on showing the symbols of resistance but which also wants to come in from the cold . Reuters reports Hamas is in talks to join the PLO.

UPDATE: MUSEE DE L’ELYSEE SUSPENDS PRIZE BECAUSE SANSOUR EXCLUDED. From Tuesday – London-based Palestinian artist Larissa Sansour, whose work explores Palestinian lives through science fiction modes, was shortisted for the Lacoste Elysee Prize – until the French fashion firm demanded her work be removed as ‘too pro-Palestinian’. Lacoste’s anxiety about its brand was last evident when it tried to stop Anders Breivik appearing in court in Lacoste clothes.