The April 2026 edition
here we try to break the algorithm
and try to highlight important topics that are not highlighted fairly in the news.
Written By Mr Ish.
For those of us who are genuinely pro‑Palestinian rights, it’s worth noting that public opinion is shifting. The majority of people around the world, and increasingly in the West, are becoming pro‑Palestinian. Yet this support often comes with significant caveats.
In this reflection, I want to highlight those differences and address them directly.
The coalition advocating for Palestinian rights is, by definition, a coalition. That means it brings together many people with different views, united by a common agreement that this issue must be addressed — and that the blind support to Israel by the United States, various European nations, and even some Middle Eastern countries must end.
However, I see internal divisions forming. I worry about a potential collapse or weakening of this movement. If we are not careful, the movement risks being rendered useless.
First, we must be clear about our core principles:
We need to remember that the primary goal of Palestinians and those who support their cause is to free the Palestinian people. This includes allowing more than 11 million Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and towns under conditions of full equality and citizenship.
Notice here: the goals align on an anti‑Zionist agenda, but the motivations differ. One is concerned with the preservation of Jewish identity from Zionist co‑option; the other is concerned with human freedom and the restoration of moral and historical justice.
In Western countries, we see two common methods used to suppress movements for social change. You can observe this pattern in the anti‑war movement during Vietnam, the Black liberation movement, the Irish socialist movements, and now the Free Palestine movement. The same playbook is used repeatedly.
The first is extreme violence. In this regard, Western countries often act no differently from dictatorships in the Middle East. This violence can be physical — police brutality, arrests — or economic — loss of employment, financial sanctions.
The second, and often more successful, technique is infiltration. Individuals are placed inside movements, given platforms and opportunities, while genuine leaders are silenced. The result is co‑optation: the movement is hollowed out from within.
I believe we can — and must — ignore certain stereotypes and continue educating people about the central issue. Some superficial or conditional forms of support can become the basis for bad policies that ultimately undermine what we are fighting for.
When we say we are pro‑Palestinian rights, we mean that we want Palestinians — all Palestinians — to have equal rights as any other human group. Not watered‑down rights where we are only permitted to sympathize with their suffering while denying them the right to resist.
When the genocide in Gaza began, I was confronted with gaslighting from people who celebrated Ukrainian resistance to the Russian invasion, calling Ukrainians heroes, yet insisted Palestinians had no right to resist. This attitude was not limited to paid Zionist shills; it came from people I knew, people I thought believed in human rights, people I thought were my friends. It left me heartbroken and disappointed.
As the genocide continued, more people realized what was happening was nothing short of genocide, and many seemed to come to our side. But I want to caution against celebrating this too quickly. When I talk to these new converts to the Palestinian cause, I often find a lack of genuine understanding. For many, it is a calculated social or political stance. Some, I fear, are a fifth column within the Palestinian civil liberation movement — especially in media and organized pro‑Palestinian spaces.
Please note: what I am addressing regarding the Palestinian issue applies to other liberation struggles as well. The goal is liberation and correcting injustice, not being popular.
1. The right to resistance
Every country and group around the world celebrates its war of independence. I live in the Midwest, and I can tell you that in the U.S., the Fourth of July is the largest holiday after Christmas. The same is true across the globe. The only exceptions are Indigenous Americans and Palestinians.
Why is that? The answer is simple: Palestinians are not granted that right. Indigenous Americans, for the most part, are now recognized as equal citizens in the countries they belong to. Resistance to an occupier is no longer needed in the same way; their struggle has shifted to civil rights and true equality. But Palestine is different.
We have 8 million Palestinians living under full occupation. We have 11 million refugees across the globe, most of whom hold no citizenship in their host countries. In places like Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, and Jordan, these communities have faced war crimes and mass killings, especially as those countries crumbled under Israeli and American invasions and regional wars. These refugees have been left targets of mass murder and religious fanaticism. The story is not just about Gaza or the West Bank. The struggle is about all Palestinians.
2. The two‑state solution
The two‑state solution, as currently framed, ensures two unacceptable outcomes: the loss of 85% of historic Palestine, and the denial of the right of return for 11 million Palestinian refugees to their homes and towns. Furthermore, the proposed solution demands a weak Palestinian state with no means to defend itself against a genocidal, nuclear‑armed racist state that has killed over 400,000 people in two years. This is not a solution; it is a reward for evil acts. Palestinians would be left in a puppet state at best, still under the control of a genocidal regime.
3. The omission of the refugee issue
Not talking about the refugee issue is a deliberate act of erasure. It signals that these people do not matter. Refugees have the right — by natural law and international law — to return to their homes and towns. To not address this issue is to not solve it. Any just solution must center the right of return.
4. The right to justice
This is the most basic right any decent person should understand. Those whose children have been murdered under occupation and by its proxies have the right to seek justice. Those whose homes were stolen have the right to seek justice, including the right to return and compensation. Justice is not optional; it is foundational.
5. The danger of leaving the Zionist state intact
Leaving a well‑armed, dangerous state intact in the Middle East will undoubtedly cause more genocides in the future — just as we have seen in the past. Why is a single state that accepts all as equals a bad thing? Such a state would be good for everyone, including Jewish settlers. Israel, as it exists, is an economic burden on the countries that support it. A peaceful, democratic state in Palestine would allow for a stable region. Any successful country is one that treats its citizens well, which in turn allows talent to stay and flourish.
Remember that if we want to support Palestinians — or any other oppressed group — we must see them as full human beings. We must accept that they are not perfect, not “perfect victims.” We must acknowledge their right to disagree with us. We support their cause because we support the liberation of a colonized people, not because we expect them to conform to our customs or expectations.
I originally wrote this article months ago. Now, I have returned to it to fix and complete it, because the need for clarity and unity has only grown.
🕊️ free Palestine • liberation & justice for all • from the river to the sea
In this report, Israeli historian and author Ilan Pappé discusses the historical evolution and current influence of the Israel lobby in American politics. He outlines how the lobby originated from a blend of religious restorationist ideas and cynical imperialist strategies, eventually shifting its focus from Britain to Washington D.C. Pappé highlights the crucial role played by figures like Theodor Herzl and later David Ben-Gurion in shaping Zionist strategies, emphasizing that the movement was initially a top-down project with little popular support among Jews, aimed at establishing a Jewish state in a land already inhabited by an organic Palestinian society.Analyzing the modern era, Pappé describes the sophisticated machinery of the lobby, perfected through the establishment of AIPAC, which exerts immense pressure on Congress and presidential elections to maintain total control over US policy in the Middle East. He argues that in the post-October 7 era, the lobby's extreme methods are becoming counterproductive to Israel itself, losing efficiency as a new generation of Americans and civil society groups adopt a moral discourse that challenges the settler-colonial narrative. Pappé concludes that despite its current power, the lobby is losing its moral authority, leading to a volatile future for both Palestine and Israel.
This conversation is a specialized podcast episode from MintPress News, featuring founder and director Mnar Adley and staff writer Robert Inlakesh. They discuss the ongoing Israeli military actions in South Lebanon and the Gaza Strip, characterizing the strategies as a deliberate campaign of ethnic cleansing and collective punishment aimed at both the Shia population and Lebanese resistance forces. The speakers analyze the failure of Israeli ground forces to effectively combat resistance, highlighting the destruction of tanks and the failure to achieve tactical military victories.Robert Inlakesh details Hezbollah's sustained resistance capabilities, asserting that the group has grown stronger despite heavy bombardment and has successfully thwarted Israeli incursions using anti-tank missiles. Furthermore, the discussion covers the complex situation in Syria following the collapse of the Bashar al-Assad government, speculating on Hezbollah obtaining military stockpiles from the Syrian Arab Army and the increased risks of a Lebanese civil war spurred by United States and Israeli efforts to disarm Hezbollah through the Lebanese government and military.
This video features an interview with Israeli historian Ilan Pappé, who discusses his new book, 'Lobbying for Zionism on Both Sides of the Atlantic'. Pappé explores the history and influence of the pro-Israel lobby in the United States and Britain, tracing its roots from the 19th century to the present day.
Key discussion points include:
1. The origins of Zionism and its early political lobbying efforts.
2. Pappé's personal experiences with censorship and pressure within Israeli academia due to his critical views.
3. The role of organizations like AIPAC in American politics and its influence on foreign policy, specifically regarding the Iraq War.
4. The influence of lobbying groups on the British Labour Party and the weaponization of antisemitism accusations to silence criticism of Israel.
5. The shift towards alternative media in response to mainstream media coverage of the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Sixty-four years after gaining independence from brutal Belgian rule, the Democratic Republic of Congo remains locked in a struggle to control its own vast natural wealth. Analyst Vijay Prashad highlights that the assassination of the country's first elected prime minister, Patrice Lumumba, was orchestrated by Western powers to maintain access to critical resources like uranium, rubber, and now cobalt. This systemic exploitation continues today through neocolonial practices, where external intervention prevents the Congolese people from developing a self-sufficient national project and industrializing their own resources, resulting in extreme poverty despite the country's immense potential.
On a more fun note, I will share this Linux video with you. The reason that I am sharing this is to help you decide which Linux Mint 22.3 edition best fits your needs based on actual performance data rather than just opinion. This video provides a detailed, objective comparison of the Cinnamon, MATE, and XFCE desktop environments, testing them on identical hardware to measure boot times, disk space utilization, and RAM consumption both at idle and under real-world usage scenarios. The findings reveal that while Cinnamon offers the richest visual experience, MATE provides a superior balance of performance and resource management, and XFCE stands out as the most lightweight and stable option for users with limited hardware.
I am a debian user but I do have one laptop with Linux Min, and I love mint because it is solid and have a great menu and is the best OS for new those new to Linux.