MadisonRafah.org

The Madison-Rafah Sister City Project (MRSCP)

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Apr 29, 2025

❝Random Quotes❞

Land on the West Bank is slowly being dragged from Palestinian control. Slowly, slowly push “them” back and back until the land is empty ― as some have pretended it was from the start. ― Irena Klepfisz, Yom Hashoah, Yom Yerushalayim, 1989

  • June 15 – 21, 2020
    Fundraising for Mrs. Najah’s Kitchen & Gaza Emergency Meals

    Rebuilding Alliance GlobalGiving’s World Refugee Week Campaign is starting Monday, June 15th, at 9am Eastern / 6am Pacific time and Palestinian refugees are included in the competition this year. I’m delighted to tell you that our newest project, Mrs. Najah’s Kitchen – Gaza Emergency Meals, is part of this campaign and competing for big bonuses!…

  • George Floyd on the Barrier in Bethlehem

    Hamed Qawasmeh, Ultra Palestine, June 7, 2020

  • The Madison-Rafah Marketplace is Open!

    In keeping with the times, we are now offering Palestinian Olive Oil and Donation and Membership services at the Madison-Rafah Marketplace, a secure online store. A new link has been added to the header menu above. Crafts may be available at the Marketplace in the future. The Marketplace is currently offering Holy Land Olive Oil…

  • The knee-on-neck, long a staple of Israel’s occupation of Palestine

    Palestinians living under Israeli military occupation have long dealt with the kind of brutality being enacted by some US police officers against African-Americans. Israeli police officers detain a Palestinian protestor during scuffles outside the compound housing al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem’s Old City March 12, 2019. (Reuters) TRT World, 30 May 2020 A now infamous…

  • ‘It’s a war crime’: Thousands rally in Tel Aviv against Netanyahu annexation bid

    Meretz MK, Joint List leader says move would create ‘apartheid’; Sanders sends video message; police forcefully detain photojournalist covering event, arrest 4 demonstrators JACOB MAGID, The Times of Israel, 6 June 2020 Thousands of Israelis attend a protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plans to annex parts of the West Bank, at Rabin Square in…

  • Received from Friends in Palestine

    “Existence is Resistance”

  • Palestine 2020 Series: Water as a Public Health Issue

    Watch the Recording of this Special Session Nidal Al-Azraq & Zena Agha on Water as a Public Health Issue Palestine Under COVID-19 & Policies of Occupation Thank you for joining our this special series for an inside look into Palestinian responses to the current policies of Occupation. You can watch the follow-up recording of the May 28th Webinar below.…

  • COVID-19 and Human Rights – 2013 Laureate Raji Sourani

    “Governments must put human rights and dignity at the centre” Raji Sourani, The Right Livelihood Foundation, May 8, 2020 On the evening of 21 March 2020, Gaza’s health ministry confirmed the first two cases of COVID-19. Overpopulated and impoverished, the Gaza Strip faces particular vulnerability in the context of the pandemic. A potential large-scale outbreak…

  • MAY 17, 2020
    CENSORED! Al Jazeera’s Documentary on the Israel Lobby-USA

    Massachusetts Peace Action, 5/11/20 Screening of a one-hour summary of the 4-part Al Jazeera investigative report that was never allowed to air, followed by Q&A. 2:00 pm – 3:30 pm Eastern The film was made by Al Jazeera during 2016, but was censored because Qatar, the gas-rich Gulf emirate that funds Al Jazeera, came under…

  • May 16, 2020
    Commemorate by Resisting: The Nakba and Indigenous Struggles

    Friends of Sabeel-North America (FOSNA), 5/11/20 From Palestine to Turtle Island (North America) settler colonialism continues to exploit land and natural resources to the detriment of indigenous communities. To commemorate Nakba Day, when 700,000 Palestinians were violently displaced from their lands, FOSNA has lined up a powerful conversation with Palestinian activist Ahed Tamimi, Indigenous scholar-activist…

  • May 14-15, 2020
    Key to Justice: Ending the ongoing Palestinian Nakba

    Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC), 5/11/20 #KeyToJustice Webinar – May 14, 4 PM Palestine time: Rafeef Ziadah, Marta Ill and Rey Perez Asis will discuss the connections between the Palestinian struggle to end the ongoing Nakba and the struggles of millions of refugees, migrants and those struggling for adequate housing worldwide, particularly during the pandemic.…

  • Consequences for Israel if it proceeds with annexation

    ICYMI: British politicians are making it clear that there will be consequences for the Israeli government if it chooses to proceed with annexation. what you didn't miss: the American government has yet to do this.https://t.co/NFna7aYgEj — IfNotNow🔥 (@IfNotNowOrg) May 4, 2020

  • Myths about Gaza — #5

    If Not Now, 5/1/20

  • Myths about Gaza — #4

    If Not Now, 4/30/20

  • Myths about Gaza — #3

    If Not Now, 4/29/20

  • Myths about Gaza — #2

    If Not Now, 4/28/20

  • Myths about Gaza — #1

    If Not Now, 4/27/20

  • Myths about Gaza

      4/27/20   Since the Coronavirus crisis began, IfNotNow has focused most of our movement’s resources on supporting the millions of Palestinian people trapped in Gaza, a densely populated strip of land that Israel’s military blockade has turned into an open air prison. Together, we gathered 13,000 signatures on a petition demanding the Israeli government…

  • Gantz-Netanyahu deal legitimizes annexation

    The possibility of further Israeli annexation of occupied territories has received legitimacy from the Israeli government, pushing even further into the abyss the slight possibility of a two-state solution. The Palestinian village of Nazlat Isa in the Israeli-occupied West Bank is seen behind the Israeli barrier from the Arab-Israeli village of Baqa al-Gharbiyye, Israel, Feb.…

  • Second Appeal in the COVID-19 Crisis

    Ref: 36/2020 Date: 14 April 2020 Time: 10:00 GMT   Second Appeal in COVID-19 Crisis PCHR Calls for Immediate Release of Minors, Women, Patients and Elderly among Palestinian Prisoners in Israeli Jails At a time where the whole world is combating the coronavirus pandemic and States have adopted precautionary and preventive measures to defy the…

  • April 22, 2020
    Gaza in Context Webinar

    Register for this Webinar Here This webinar is part of a series of virtual events to raise funds for the Let’s Get Free 2020 Program. We are requesting a donation to join the webinar, from $0 – $50. Additional donations are welcome! Can’t attend? Donations are always welcome: DONATE HERE Eyewitness Palestine & the March…

  • Tarek Abuata: Human Rights in Palestine During the Pandemic

    Recorded on WORT 89.9 FM A Public Affair with host Esty Dinur: WORT website • SoundCloud • Facebook • Twitter Tarek Abuata grew up in Bethlehem and moved with his family to Texas during the first Intifada when he was 12. After graduating from the University of Texas Law School, he worked in Ramallah researching…

  • Coronavirus and Gaza

    DONATE! Here are three good options for sending medical relief to Palestine and Gaza: Rebuilding Alliance has a matching grant deadline of midnight EST on Friday, March 27: Closed The Middle East Children’s Alliance needs to raise $45,000 ASAP for a targeted prevention campaign in Gaza: Donate Finally, United Nations Relief and Works Administration (UNRWA)…

  • March 28, 2020
    Webinar: Film Gaza Fights For Freedom by Abby Martin

    Social Justice Event Collective, March 5, 2020 Please join us for a film webinar on March 28th, 2020 at 1:00 PM Eastern Time for the screening of Gaza Fights for Freedom, a film by US journalist Abby Martin. This screening is presented by Social Justice Event Collective and co-hosted by Canadian Boat to Gaza, Independent…

  • Palestinians report 1st cases of coronavirus in Gaza Strip

    Workers wearing protective gear spray disinfectant as a precaution against the coronavirus, at the main market in Gaza City, Thursday, March 19, 2020. (AP Photo/Adel Hana) FARES AKRAM, Associated Press, March 22, 2020 GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — The Palestinian Health Ministry announced early Sunday that two residents who returned recently from Pakistan to…

  • Help Palestinians in Gaza survive Coronavirus

    If Not Now, March 20,2020 We have an opportunity to save thousands of lives — if we act now. As the coronavirus pandemic sweeps our country and the world, I am watching everyday people do what is necessary — in the vacuum left by our government’s failure — to help their communities. My friends are…

  • Groundbreaking Call to Prevent US Aid for Palestinian Demolition

    US FUNDS AND EQUIPMENT USED TO DISPLACE COMMUNITIES IN THE OCCUPIED WEST BANK J Street, March 16, 2020 J Street welcomes a groundbreaking congressional letter that calls on the Trump administration to strongly oppose the Israeli government’s demolition and displacement of Palestinian communities in the occupied West Bank, and to determine whether materiel purchased from…

  • Cancelled March 29, 2020 Tribute to Rachel Corrie: Freedom is the Future

    This event with Tarek Abuata has been cancelled by coronavirus precautions. You can still listen to an interview with Tarek from Gaza on WORT 89.9 FM’s A Public Affair with host Esty Dinur on Friday, March 27 from noon to 1 pm. Call in at 256-2001 or listen live on line. Tarek Abuata grew up…

  • Coronavirus Is a Death Sentence for Palestinians Caged in Gaza

    Even a small outbreak among Gaza’s densely-packed, blockaded population would put an impossible strain on a healthcare system already teetering on the verge of collapse A man, wearing a mask against coronavirus infection, looks through a fence as he waits for Palestinians returning from abroad. Gaza’s Rafah border crossing with Egypt. March 8, 2020. (IBRAHEEM…

  • International Women’s Day

    Today, on #IWD2020, we celebrate the inspiring leadership of women, in Palestine and worldwide, at the forefront of our struggles against oppression and militarization, and for a more just, beautiful and dignified world. #UnitedWePrevail #MilitaryEmbargo on Israel pic.twitter.com/DxUA1SAQTm — BDS movement (@BDSmovement) March 8, 2020

  • Palestinian Rights Organization Challenges Meritless Lawsuit

    06 Mar 2020 Case is Part of Broader Assault on Human Rights Defenders March 6, 2020, Washington, DC – Last night, the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR) moved to dismiss a meritless lawsuit filed against it by the Jewish National Fund (JNF) and several individuals. Human rights attorneys say the lawsuit targets USCPR’s support…

  • Oppose the Israeli Annexation of Palestinian Land

    This is a new group in the LaCrosse area that is becoming more active on Palestinian issues. Please consider signing and circulating this petition. COULEE REGION COALITION FOR PALESTINIAN RIGHTS, 3/6/20 To: Our elected officials From: [Your Name] We urgently oppose the threatened annexation by Israel of Palestinian land in the West Bank. Israel has…

  • New Rafah School Water Filter Donation Premium

    Available for a limited time! Can you help put us over the top? Dear Friends, We are happy to report that we are less than $1,500 away from funding the latest Maia Project clean water filter system for a school in Rafah, Palestine. This will be the fifth Maia filter provided to Rafah schools through…

  • 2019 Index of Racism and Incitement in Israeli Social Media

    Israeli elections were the primary reason for increasing incitement against Arabs Arab Center for the Advancement of Social Media, 27th Feb 2020 – One violent post against Arabs and Palestinians every 64 seconds – 495,000 violent posts against Arabs and Palestinians in 2019 – The Joint List and its leaders were the primary subjects of…

  • Homes Demolished in South Hebron Hills

    Hello friends, On the morning of February 27 Israeli forces arrived in the small Palestinian village of Isfaiy and used a bulldozer to demolish a barn for sheep and goats. They then drove to the small cluster of houses that is the village of al Rakeez, South Hebron Hills, and demolished two homes, leaving three…

  • March 6-7, 2020
    INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE: REFUGEES IN/FROM THE MIDDLE EAST

    Policy Implications, Education, and Artistic Representations   Pyle Center 720 Langdon St UW-Madison   This interdisciplinary conference brings together scholars from the social sciences and humanities who examine forced migration within the context of the Middle East. Conference Program Friday, March 6, 4 to 6 pm Mohamad Hafez Keynote Lecture “HOMELAND inSECURITY” Nancy Nicholas Hall (co-sponsored…

  • Appeals Court Affirms Dismissal of 8-year Lawsuit Over Israel Boycott

    Case Dismissed Against Former Board Members of Olympia Food Co-op Center for Constitutional Rights, March 9, 2018 Olympia, WA — A Washington appeals court has upheld a ruling that dismissed a lawsuit against former board members of the Olympia Food Co-op for the co-op’s decision to boycott Israeli goods. The ruling came yesterday in a…

  • Israeli Military Confiscates School in Susiya

    Video Link Good Shepherd Collective, February 19, 2020 This morning, the Israeli military entered the village of Susiya with a bulldozer in order to confiscate a small, one-room building that served as the children’s school. As you watch the video, consider the perspective of the Palestinian GSC leader who took this video. After waking up…

  • Palestinians stand in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en nation

    The TransCanada Coastal Gaslink pipeline aims to steal Wet’suwet’en land, use resource extraction to solidify control over Indigenous territories, destroy the environment and violate Indigenous laws. Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC), February 13, 2020 From the occupied Palestinian territory, we stand in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en nation and land defenders at the Unist’ot’en Camp and…

  • What Valentine’s Day Means in Gaza, Palestine

    Hani and his uncle and daughter in front of an UNRWA school in the Gaza Strip UNRWA USA, February 7, 2020 Hani Almadhoun is UNRWA USA’s new Director of Philanthropy. Though he now lives in Virginia with his wife and daughters, he grew up in the Gaza Strip. Hani’s father was an UNRWA teacher in…

  • Now – March 15, 2020
    Exhibit: Unpacked: Refugee Baggage

    Including Palestinian textiles provided by MRSCP Lynn Mecklenburg Textile Gallery, Room 1235 School of Human Ecology 1300 Linden Drive, UW-Madison “UNPACKED: Refugee Baggage” seeks to humanize the word “refugee.” This multimedia exhibit features the sculptures of Mohamad Hafez, a Syrian-born, Connecticut-based artist and architect who re-creates war-torn domestic interiors within suitcases. Each piece is based…

  • February 29, 2020
    International Festival

    Overture Center 201 State Street Madison 10 am – 5 pm Join MRSCP and many other Madison sister cities, businesses, and organizations at the annual celebration of the rich cultural heritage in our community. Come and enjoy the free performances, plus food and crafts from all over the world! MRSCP and Playgrounds for Palestine-Madison will…

  • Strangers in Our Homeland

    MK Aida Touma-Sliman, January 15th, 2019. Photo: Mazur/catholicnews.org.uk via Flickr Aida Touma-Sliman, JewishCurrents, February 6, 2020 LAST WEEK, Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu announced a deal that is intended to determine the future of the Palestinian people, without a single Palestinian present in the room or involved in the consultation process. They unveiled the plan…

  • George K. Shalabi, 1939-2020

    George Kamel Shalabi passed away January 31, 2020 from complications due to congestive heart failure. He was born at home on April 9, 1939 in Haifa, Palestine to Nahala and Kamel Shalabi. He was the oldest of four boys — a position of responsibility, respect and honor in Arab families. This helped form his personality…

  • Trump’s “Deal of the Century” Has Led to Violence Not Peace

    February 08, 2020 (WASHINGTON, D.C. 2/8/20)—Since President Donald Trump released the details of his much-derided so-called “deal of the century,” a total of five Palestinians, including a teenager, have been killed by Israeli forces while protesting a “peace plan” that has delivered nothing but promises of further dispossession and apartheid. Rather than achieving peace, this plan has…

  • Israeli Occupation Forces Kill 3 and Destroy Home in Less than 24 Hours

    February 6, 2020 The newest Israeli killing of Palestinians under its policy of excessive use of force, the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) killed 3 Palestinians and wounded 8 others in less than 24 hours in Jenin and Hebron, north and south of the West Bank. Of the Palestinians killed, 2, including a policeman, were shot…

  • Violence Surges in Wake of Trump’s Mideast Plan

    Clashes, shootings and a vehicle attack erupt in the West Bank and Jerusalem, killing Palestinians and wounding Israeli soldiers. Palestinians inspected the rubble of a house in Jenin demolished by Israeli troops on Thursday. The home belonged to a Palestinian accused of being involved in the drive-by shooting of a rabbi two years ago. (Majdi…

  • Trump Plan Protests in the Jordan Valley

    Operation Dove, January 29, 2020 Tubas, Jordan Valley — Today in response to the “Deal of the Century” Palestinians gathered for an action in the Jordan Valley during which they plowed the land in an area declared a closed military zone for training. Israeli soldiers responded to this action by firing sound grenades and tear…