Articles & Opinions

Articles and opinion from Pal-Think researchers

Behind high walls and narrow doors: another ugly face of international institutions in the Gaza Strip — By Omar Shaban. The division and the Israeli blockade offered golden opportunities for some international organisations and their staff to profit enormously from the international…
What do the peace envoys in the Middle East actually do? — By Omar Shaban. The small triangle of Tel Aviv, Ramallah and Jerusalem is crowded with more peace envoys than anywhere in the world — yet the sought-after peace has not arrived…
Pal-Think contributes to lifting the blockade on Gaza — By Dr. Nasser Al-Yafawi. Human thought and behaviour are built on learning from the other and on an inheritance of traits drawn from one's culture and nation — a disposition that…
Behind the numbers of the Palestinian Authority's 2013 budget — By Omar Shaban. Budget preparation and approval always draw local and international attention, given the PA's chronic fiscal crisis and its toll on the Authority's standing — the…
Hamas and Egypt need people-to-people diplomacy — By Omar Shaban. Against the tension in Egypt–Hamas relations after accusations in some Egyptian and Arab papers that Hamas elements took part in the Rafah attack of 5 August 2012…
A Palestinian currency: a dream awaiting national reconciliation and political independence — By Omar Shaban. Reviving the Palestinian pound is a dream Palestinians have long entertained — between the pull of national feeling and sovereignty and the reality of a small,…
The gas fields off Gaza's coast: how close Gaza is to Nigeria, geography notwithstanding — By Omar Shaban. How close Gaza is to Nigeria despite the distance: Nigeria, among the world's biggest oil exporters, is also among its poorest places — hundreds die seeking a few…
The tug-of-war between the Hamas government and international institutions in Gaza — By Omar Shaban. Relations between international organisations working in Gaza and the Hamas government have been marked by deep tension and mistrust — the former adopting the…
Reconciling the government apparatus is the first act of any full reconciliation — By Omar Shaban. In response to Hamas's takeover of Gaza in June 2007, the Palestinian Authority took measures intended to make Hamas's administration of the Strip impossible and…