PRAGOTI

Now that Israel has declared a ceasefire in Gaza and withdrawn its troops from what it calls the border, it is only time before the attention of the world's media also fades. At any given time, most of the Western media is, in any case, a willing victim of Israel's well honed policy of Hasbara (in case you don't know what Hasbara is and how it works, then here are three links to help you: link one, link two and link three).

We at Pragoti have, in its own limited ways, tried to highlight this tragic and criminal war from a strong anti-imperialist and humanitarian perspective. Now that the actual hostilities by Israel have stopped, it is all the more necessary to keep the spotlight on Israel's crimes by bringing together the best of analysis and insight on this issue. The principle tragedy of the matter is not that Israel is killing thousands of innocent civillians but that it has been successful in depriving an entire people of their land, history and humanity for six decades now without facing any significant public outcry.

"Millions have already protested over Gaza. We need more such actions to force our governments to act. We need citizens to start an immediate boycott of Israeli companies and goods. We must put pressure on Indian companies that they cease doing business with Israel. Boycott, disinvestment and sanctions are what finally led to the dissolution of South Africa's apartheid regime. Only such actions will lead to the defeat of the Apartheid regime of Israel". Prabir Purkayastha writes in this article for People's Democracy.

An interview with Gilbert Achcar who is now a Professor at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London.He lived in Lebanon for many years. He is the author of many books analysing politics and society in the Middle East from a Left perspective, including The Clash of Barbarisms, Eastern Cauldron, The 33-Day War and Perilous Power (a collection of dialogues between Achcar and Noam Chomsky). He spoke to Daniel Finn for Irish Left Review about the Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip and its likely consequences.

The tragedy of Palestine will end only when there is a complete democratisation and secularisation of Israel. Aniket Alam writes on the situation in Gaza.