Arwa's Articles

New Blogging Sites!

2010-07-04T10:45:00.000-07:00

It's official. I've moved- * gasp* well over 8 months ago now- to wordpress which is a easier to use.All the blogs and comments have been moved across and the official site for all my freelance work is now: http://arwafreelance.wordpress.com/I also recently started blogging/dumping interesting stuff at: http://arwaaburawa.wordpress.com/Just thought I'd let people know.

Western World's Climate Debt to the Poor

2009-08-03T16:41:00.000-07:00

Spending My Shekels on Palestine

2009-08-03T16:34:00.000-07:00

Before setting off to Jerusalem, I sat down and thought very carefully about how I wanted to spend my money in the city. A lot of people who support the Palestinian cause are careful to boycott Israeli products but a lot fewer have the chance to actively support the Palestinian economy. Visiting Jerusalem would be my chance to throw in my shekels for the Palestinian economy so I want to make

Muslim Fashion: A Leap of Faith?

2009-08-02T14:24:00.000-07:00

Integrating faith and fashion is no easy task.Just ask the millions of Muslims across the Western world, who endure endlessly frustrating trips to the mall, trying to find something- anything- to wear which is remotely suitable. Many complain that when it comes to fashion, the Western world just does not accommodate Muslims. In the last couple of years, however, things have begun to change in the

In Palestine, Plant Your Resistance

2009-07-03T16:36:00.000-07:00

West Bank water access mired in politics

2009-05-26T13:55:00.000-07:00

Arwa Aburawa, The Electronic Intifada, 26 May 2009 Workers from the Israeli water authority backed by armed soldiers take water samples in the occupied West Bank town of Qalqiliya. (Khaleel Reash/MaanImages)Friends of the Earth Middle East (FoEME) is calling for the replacement of committees, which control the West Bank's water, for having

Islamic Architecture in Jerusalem

2009-05-16T17:41:00.000-07:00

Haram al-Sharif: first qibla, second mosque and third holiest site in IslamNestled in the old city walls of Jerusalem, the Haram al-Sharif, or al-Aqsa Sanctuary, is the single most sacred site in the Holy Land. As the first qibla in Islam and third holiest site after Mecca and Medinah, this vast promenade also marks the blessed site of Prophet Muhammad's [pbuh] ascension to heaven. Indeed, Allah

What's behind the Israeli Separation Wall? Implications for Jerusalem

2009-05-16T17:31:00.001-07:00

Formation of Palestinian Identity

2009-05-16T17:18:00.000-07:00

Palestinians have been divided and systematically fragmented since the Nakba (disaster) of 1948 which tore them from their homes and dispersed them across the world. There are those living within Israel who are separated from those living in the West Bank, and both are cut off from those in Gaza; Palestinians living in refugee camps throughout the Arab world and those in the global

Lost in the Sacred Book Review

2009-05-16T17:14:00.000-07:00

May 2009 Why does the Muslim world lag behind so dramatically? Is Western dominance to blame? Or is the problem with Islam itself? These are the questions that Dan Diner poses in this book and, ultimately, his response to whether Islam is to blame for lack of progress is a resounding YES. Diner's thesis is based on the assumption that the Muslim/Arab World's desperate need for modernisation-

Islamic Art for a New World

2009-04-16T17:56:00.000-07:00

Lemon Trees and Security Walls: Life Under Conflict in Palestine

2009-04-05T02:51:00.000-07:00

The Arab talks to.... Khalil Bendib

2009-03-05T02:37:00.000-08:00

March 2009The Arab MagazineBorn during the Algerian war of independence and raised as a refugee in Morocco, Khalil Bendib says he was born to be a political cartoonist. From early drawings of the banned Algerian flag as a three year-old to his current impassioned and intellectually-informed cartoons, his personal experience of conflict has compelled him to be a voice against injustice everywhere.

Leese criticised delays in spending 1 million as unacceptable

2009-03-03T06:57:00.000-08:00

Big Issue North 16-22 February 2009The leader of Manchester City Council,Richard Leese, has criticised delays in spending £1 million to tackle climate change as unacceptable and insisted that the council “start delivering actual programmes” with the money.In February 2008 the council pledged £1 million to help slash the city’s annual C02 emissions by a million tonnes by 2020. But the money lies

Fears for the children of Gaza

2009-01-25T02:23:00.000-08:00

January 2009 Friends of Al-Aqsa Newspaper by Arwa Aburawa As the attack on the Gaza Strip continues, a Palestinian human rights organisation has warned of the immediate danger to children being targeted and killed by Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF). The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights states in

Keeping the cause alive: Is assimilation leading to annihilation of Palestinian identity?

2009-01-12T12:54:00.000-08:00

The Arab: Issue 6 (Nov/Dec 2008) Palestinian refugees are a major unifying facet of Palestinian identity and an important symbol of Palestinian history but also a major source of conflict in the peace process. Many feel that improvements in refugee camps alongside successful integration in host countries will dilute the

Wrong to recycle?

2009-01-12T12:25:00.000-08:00

Big Issue North 1-7 December 2008A recycling company’s plans for a green energy plant in Horwich, near Bolton is facing local opposition due to complaints about its existing site and a claimed lack of public consultation.Armstrong Environmental Services, the Bolton recycling company based in Bolton, is planning to install the powerful 20-megawatt generator at the site of the former Horwich

Author Q&A: Andrew M. Davies

2009-01-12T12:14:00.000-08:00

The Big Issue in the NorthIssue: 745THE GANGS OF MANCHESTER(Milo Books, £11.99)Andrew Davies is senior lecturer in modern British history at the University of Liverpool. The Gangs of Manchester: The Story Of The Scuttlers, explores the violent underworld of youth gangs that emerged in Manchester during the late 1870s until their eventual demise at the turn of the century.What drew you to the

Power to the People

2009-01-12T12:11:00.000-08:00

by Arwa AburawaOct 31, 2008Positive News Issue"There is the benefit to the environment, obviously. We are generating green, renewable energy. But the major benefit is that we have done it and so inspired dozens of other towns and villages to do the same."Richard Body, a local shareholder and a director at the Torrs Hydro New Mills Limited group is obviously proud of his community's achievement

Palestine Inside Out: An Everyday Occupation. Book Review

2009-01-01T13:18:00.000-08:00

Reviewed by Arwa Aburawa, ManchesterSaree Makdisi is no historian; he isn’t a political commentator, activist or even a semi-political writer. He’s a professor of English literature at UCLA, and whilst you may think that this disqualifies him from adding to the already crowded field of the Palestine/Israel conflict, his work is quite simply a breath of fresh air. His book, Palestine Inside Out:

Ethical Fashion

2009-01-01T13:08:00.000-08:00

by Arwa AburawaThere seems to be no foreseen resolution. We're constantly battling our conscious with questions of whether organic, fair-trade or sweatshop-free clothing is more important. So, even though your new year’s resolution was to be more green, you’re left wondering if heading for the hills is your only realistic option. Well, don’t pack your camping gear just yet as I’ve put together

Flour Power: Ethical Consumer Ratings

2008-05-16T17:49:00.000-07:00

Best Buys as of July/August 2008 As our ratings are constantly updated, it is possible that company ratings on the ethiscore website may have changed since this report was written. Bacheldre Watermill organic flour (01588 620489) is ground using ancient stones in a mid-Wales mill. Glebe Farm organic flour (01487 773 282) is

Palestinian, Jordanian, or both?

2008-01-12T12:09:00.000-08:00

by Arwa Aburawa23 September 2008Manchester, England - “I love Jordan,” whispered a young refugee girl. “I love Jordan even though I’m Palestinian.”Listening to Ibtisaam, a proud Palestinian who lives in the expansive refugee camps of Jordan, I could see that this was a hard confession to make. In light of her Palestinian pride it was hard to justify her love of Jordan since this was seen as a