Issue 5/March 1998 

Editor, Prof. Barry Rubin

TABLE OF CONTENTS

IMPORTANT NEWS: NEW OFFER TO AUTHORS; NEW ROUNDTABLE FEATURE; MERIA JOINS COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY PRESS PROJECT; MERIA JOURNAL VOL. 2 NO. 1 COMPLETED.

ARTICLE: Ben Mollov & Musa Isa Barhoum, "Building Religious and Cultural Bridges Between Palestinian & Israeli University Students

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NEW OFFER TO AUTHORS: If you've written a book or scholarly/analytical article on a Middle East topic, MERIA offers to publish brief summaries in MERIA News. Entries should be no longer than 50 words for books or 30 words for articles. We recommend you include a) title, publication or publisher, and date of publication; b) Topic covered; and c) Main themes or theses. The purpose is to acquaint readers with work being done and help those especially interested to obtain and read the entire text. (No op-ed pieces please at this time though we might add these in future.) Write: Barry Rubin, besa@ashur.cc.biu.ac.il.

NEW ROUNDTABLE FEATURE: If you're interested in putting together a group of 3-6 people or suggesting a topic, MERIA is open to organizing a "roundtable" for publication in MERIA News or Journal. See MERIA Journal Vol. 2, No. 1 for an example. Several questions will be posed and participants can give their views and comment on others' remarks. Write: Barry Rubin, besa@ashur.cc.biu.ac.il.

MERIA JOINS COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY PRESS PROJECT: MERIA is pleased to have become part of the Columbia International Affairs Online (CIAO) project. The MERIA Journal will become one of a very select group of research center projects and publications from around the world. For more information and to see the CIAO site: http://ciaonet.org/

MERIA JOURNAL VOL. 2 NO. 1 COMPLETED: That issue is now on our homepage if you missed any of the articles.

When the late Anwar Sadat made his historic dramatic trip to Jerusalem 20 years ago, he asserted the importance of bridging the gap between Arabs and Jews by breaking what he called the "Psychological Barrier" between the two peoples. While real and objective problems need to be solved between Israelis and the Arabs as part of a peace settlement, certainly the psychological atmosphere existing between Israelis and Palestinians is a factor which can either enhance or retard the possibilities for peace to develop. In this article we will suggest that the insufficiently explored commonalities between the Islamic and Judaic cultures can serve as a psychological bridge of the type which President Sadat spoke of, referring to concrete examples.

As educators of university students we would like to share our experiences as supervisors of a unique student dialogue which has been taking place for the last several years. The dialogue has involved students from Bar-Ilan University and Palestinian students from a variety of Palestinian universities. We believe that the experiences of the above-mentioned dialogue points the way and serves as an excellent head start toward the possibility that both Arabs and Jews can achieve positive perceptions of each other. In contrast to the belief that religion only serves to fan the flame of conflict, the dialogue has shown that the religious cultural background of both Islam and Judaism can contribute to a friendly psychological atmosphere which will bridge the gap between the two peoples.

When our students met for the first time three years ago in Bethlehem, it wasn't clear what common agenda could be found as a foundation for constructive dialogue. The answers though appeared to come from the students themselves. It began with an innocent question by a Jewish woman student to an Arab female student who asked if she wore the head covering for the same reason that an Orthodox Jewish woman would. This first exchange led to other questions and answers, for instance concerning similarities and differences between the observances of Ramadan and Yom Kippur, the Kosher and Halal food, the way the two peoples worship the same G-d, the teachings of the two religions, the belief of the Moslems and Jews in the same one G-d, the respect and belief of the Moslems of all the prophets and not discriminating between anyone of them, the belief of the Muslims that Prophet Abraham is the grandfather of all Arabs and Jews. As a result of the last-mentioned point, one of the most important things concluded was the idea that Muslims and Jews as descendants of Abraham could achieve improved perceptions of each other. Also they discussed the origins and similarities among the three monotheistic religions. A variety of topics were initially discussed. The way the Qu'ran and Prophet Mohammed recommended the good treatment of the neighbors. Even during war, the Islamic teachings advise the Muslims not to kill children, elderly people or women. In one meeting the story and significance of creation as presented in both the Torah and Qu'ran were compared; in another meeting, essential prayers and religious credos in both Islam and Judaism were explored as expressions of the faith which Arabs and Jews hold dear.

As students from both sides wished to continue their meetings, it became clear to us that a continued comparison between Islam, Judaism (and Christianity) served as a highly constructive foundation for dialogue. Many important issues were dealt with in a thoughtful manner such as the challenge of bio-ethics, or the ethics of life concerning both biological and social ecology; how the two religions update religious structure and observance in each era; and the manner in which prayer is performed by the two peoples. Students were pleased to discover almost identical terminology or concepts for many elements in the two religions, as reflected in culture and language (for instance such as the name of G-d). On several occasions high level student faculty delegations from Japan and India, who were interested in bio-ethics from a religious perspective and in conflict resolution, joined and enriched our deliberations.

Besides the intellectual stimulation, the experience of scores of our students can make an important contribution for conflict resolution. Experts in inter-cultural communication believe that when groups in conflict discover some elements of commonality in an opposing group, the way can be opened for a lessening of tension and new more positive mutual perceptions to emerge.

Again, the activity of the Arab-Israeli students can be instructive. After discovering commonalities in the two religious cultures in the semi-formal circle discussions which opened our meetings, students were then able to divide into their own informal discussion sub-groups, and over coffee and refreshments, to discuss freely and openly any topic that was on their minds including highly controversial political issues in a warm, friendly and respectful atmosphere.

Interactions between the Israeli and Palestinian students and faculty have not remained limited to the formal meetings. Personal relationships have developed which have survived the vicissitudes of sometimes turbulent current events; members have reacted constructively during tragedy and difficulty and have visited each other on personal occasions of both illness and celebration, thus creating a strong human bond for the dialogues to continue.

From our experience, we do not assume that achieving a formal Israeli-Palestinian peace will be easy. Both the Israeli and Palestinian members of the dialogue are proud members of their communities and have their respective religious and national principles. However we have found that we can enrich each other and together discover deeper elements such as our similar religious heritages which can serve to create a new atmosphere that would generate hope instead of despair, while the official leaders on both sides are summoned to arrive at a peace agreement ultimately to serve both of our peoples.

We sincerely hope that our efforts will be encouraged by the formal leadership on both sides and that other groups will follow our example. In recent years, courageous leaders have come forward to enable the peace process to develop. President Sadat understood the importance of breaking the psychological barrier between Arabs and Jews and building new bridges between them, and Yitzhak Rabin sensed new possibilities in the region. It is their legacy which we wish to honor and enlarge upon., as we tap into the cultural background of Islam and Judaism as a basis for conflict resolution and perception change to occur.

Ben Mollov is a lecturer in political science at Bar-Ilan University and coordinates the department of Political Science at the Ashkelon Regional College under Bar-Ilan's auspices. Musa Isa Barhoum is an assistant professor at Al-Quds Open University, He is in charge of the Department of Educational Technology. He has taught in a number of Palestinian universities.

JOURNALS
Israel Affairs special issue, Israel at the Polls, 1996, includes: Daniel J. Elazar and Shmuel Sandler, "The Battle over Jewishness and Zionism in the Post-Modern Era; Efraim Inbar, "Netanyahu Takes Over"; Giora Goldberg, "The Electoral Fall of the Israeli Left"; Eliezer Don-Yehiya, "Religion, Ethnicity and Electoral Reform: The Religious Parties and the 1996 Elections"; Hillel Frisch, "The Arab Vote: The Radicalization of Politicization?"; Etta Bick, "Sectarian Party Politics in Israel: The Case of Yisrael Ba'Aliya, the Russian Immigrant Party"; Barry Rubin, "External Influences on the Israeli Elections"; Sam Lehman- Wilzig, "The Media Campaign: The Negative Effects of Positive Campaigning"; Yael Yishai, "The Great Losers: Women in the 1996 Elections"; and other articles. See: http://www.frankcass.comljnls

Perceptions, Journal of international Affairs, Ankara Turkey, December 1997-February 1998, includes two especially interesting articles--Patrick Clawson, "Iran and Caspian Basin Oil and Gas"; Bozkurt Guvenc, "Secular Trends and Turkish Identity"--and other pieces on Central Asia, Mediterranean security, and Turkish policy. Write: strategy@mfa.gov.tr

DAVO #7, February 1998, is the organ of the Deutsche Arbeitsgemeinschaft Vorderer Orient, the Germany Middle East studies society. But while written mostly in Germany it has much to offer the English-language reader also. It includes a roster of members, detailed summary of conference papers, conferences, dissertations, and organizations from around the world. Write: DAVO@geo.uni-mainz.de/davo

The spring issue of Orbis, journal of the Foreign Policy Research Institute, is devoted to religion and world affairs, including Emmanuel Sivan, "The Holy War Tradition in Islam." For a free copy, write: FPRI@aol.com.

The Arab Inheritance by Fouad Ajami, Foreign Affairs, September/October 1997, pp. 133-148

BOOKS
Bulent Aras, Palestinian-Israeli Peace Process and Turkey, 184 pp., $49, Nova Science Publishers, Novascience@Earthlink.net.

William Harris, Faces of Lebanon: Sects, Wars and Global Extensions (Princeton, Markus Weiner Publishers) 354 pp, $16.95.

Paul Auchterlonie, Yemen, Revised Edition, 372 pp., 63 pounds sterling. A comprehensive and critically annotated bibliography of materials about the country. Double the size of the first edition. Write: oxford@abc-clio.com

Palestinian Academic Society for the Study of International Affairs (PASSIA) PASSIA Diary 1998 (292 pp., 40 shekels), a desk calendar and the most comprehensive reference for Palestinian leaders, groups, statistics, events, and issues: passia@palnet.com

Xiaojie Xu, China's role in Central Asian Oil and Gas Scene (1998), 30 pages. $8. Write: Xiaojie Xu xiaojie@iname.com

Fouad Ajami and Adam Phillips, The Dream Palace of the Arabs (Pantheon Books - ISBN=0375401504).

I.B. Tauris, Middle East-New Books catalog: bmail@ibtauris.com

PUBLISHERS PROFILE: Lynne Rienner Publishers

Two catalogs are available, Books on the Middle East 1997- 1998" and Middle Eastern Literature & Criticism. New titles include: Mahmood Monshipouri, Islamism, Secularism, and Human Rights in the Middle East; Rex Brynen, Bahgat Korany and Paul Noble, Political Liberalization and Democratization in the Arab World, Vol. 1, Theoretical Perspectives and Vol. 2 Case Studies; Diversity Within Unity: Gender Dynamics and Change in Muslim Societies; and Women, Work, and Economic Reform in the Middle East and North Africa. We all would like to see more Middle East novels in translation and the catalog includes six new and six forthcoming novels and other literature from Moroccan, Tunisian, Algerian, Pakistani, Egyptian, Saudi and Israeli writers! These include Tawfiq al-Hakim and Voices of Change: Short Stories by Saudi Arabian Women Writers.

ITEMS ON THE IRAQ CRISIS:
Adam Garfinkle, Discontented on Iraq, January 30, 1998 and Iraq: What to Do and What Not to Do, February 6, 1998, Foreign Policy Research Institute. Free: FPRI@aol.com

Erik J. Leklem, Iraqi BW Program May be Key to Standoff with UN, Arms Control Today, October 1997, p. 25

ITEMS ON IRAN AND WEAPONS PROLIFERATION:
U.S. House of Representatives, Hearing on the Iranian Medium- Range Ballistic Middle Program, November 4, 1997, 16 p.

US H of R, Committee on International Relations, Iran Missile Proliferation Sanctions Act of 1997, November 4, 1997, 14 p.

Report by Mr. Gilman from the Committee on International Relations, together with Dissenting Views, Urging the Executive Branch to Take Action Regarding the Acquisition By Iran of C802 Cruise Missiles, 105th Congress, House, of Representatives, 1st Session, Report, 6 p.

Harvey Sicherman, The Iranian Gorbachev: Khatami's "New Thinking," Foreign Policy Research Institute, January 13, 1998. Free: FPRI@aol.com

Office of the U.S. Secretary of Defense, Proliferation: Threat and Response (Nov 1997), 88 p., includes chapters on Middle East.

Washington Kurdish Institute is a major center studying Kurds in Iran, Iraq, Turkey, and elsewhere: http://www.kurd.org/kurd

European Association for Jewish Studies includes Middle East- related materials: http://nonuniv.ox.ac.uk/~eajs/

Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies, Yarnton Manor also researches Israel: http://associnst.ox.ac.uk/ochjs/index.html

The Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizen's Rights has published its third annual report: piccr@palnet.com or http://msanews.mynet.net/gateway/piccr

Center for Lebanese Studies (Oxford) http://nonuniv.ox.ac.uk/cls

Arabist http://www.arabist.com is very useful, with a search engine on Arab topics and a comprehensive list of Arab university sites at http://www.arabist.com/education/universities.html

CHANGES OF ADDRESS:
Palestine Diaspora & Refugee Centre (Shaml): http://www.shaml.org and email: shaml@shaml.org

Arab E Mail Journal is now at http://www.pcug.co.uk/~ajournal/

The Arabic Electronic Mail Journal, listproc@lists.PCUG.CO.UK To Subscribe: message: subscribe journal-l

The Hebrew University of Jerusalem is organizing the National Competition of Graduate Multidisciplinary Research. Participants can be Ph.D. students up to 6 months after the approval of their research proposal or Ph.D. students and young researchers up to 2 years after the approval of their Ph.D. thesis. Prizes range from 3,000 to 5,000 shekels. For full information: http://complex.fiz.huji.ac.il/~mult2020/ and mail applications to: Professor Yehuda Stolov: msyuda@mscc.huji.ac.il

Alan D. Miller admiller@qal.Berkeley.EDU: I am writing my senior thesis on: the effect of the Post-Zionist debate on the historiography of the early period of the state (roughly 1947-1950) and the Palestinian exodus. Any references or other suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Richard Bishop RBishop@aol.com: I am a doctoral student in education at the U of West Florida who for 5 years has been working to prepare Saudi and Kuwait personnel to attend US Navy training programs while working on my dissertation, "Learning Situation Negotiations Between Americans And Saudi Arabians." I would like to correspond with American and Saudi professionals who have participated in training program contract negotiations. I would be pleased to share my results. If you are interested in participating in my study or know someone please email me.

Jean-Paul Derai would like references on the 1981 Israeli raid on Iraq's Osirak reactor, as well as material on Israeli nuclear policy then and now. Partial response: For a start, see Shai Feldman in International Security and his book on Israel's nuclear policy and also Efraim Inbar on Israel's Strategic Thinking in Journal of Strategic Studies (1983). On Osirak itself see: Shai Feldman, The Raid on Osirak: A Preliminary Assessment, Jaffe Center Memorandum No. 5, August 1981 and Shalim Nakdimon, Tammuz in Flames (Edahim Publishers, Yediot Aharnot, Tel Aviv, 1993) [Hebrew].

Cameron Brown wants to find material on Weapons of Mass Destruction proliferation in Iraq and Iran, and US strategy for countering it. [See new publications, above].

March: Deadline for submitting manuscripts to the Canadian Review of Comparative Literature/Revue Canadienne de Litterature Comparee special issue, Modern Arabic Literature: The Comparative Perspective, regarding: genre studies, literary theory, feminism, Western scholarship on Naguib Mahfouz, bibliography and the role of translation: Muhammad Deeb mdeeb@gpu.srv.ualberta.ca

March 13. Oxford, England, St. Antony's Middle East Centre, 5pm. Dr. Nabid Osairan, "Bahraini Women: The Psycho-Social Construction of gender roles."

* March 19. Haifa, Israel. Jewish-Arab Center, one-day conference, "Land Questions," write: fjar401@uvm.haifa

* March 19-20, Cairo, Egypt, URBAMA, CNRS, University of Tours, France, "Analyses and Dynamic of Poverty in the Middle East and North Africa

* March 20-21. Princeton, NJ USA. Badlisy Center for Kurdish Studies, Second International Conference, The Regional Dimensions of Kurdish Identity: Prospects for the 21st Century. http://www.kurd.org/kurd

* March 24-26, Amman, Jordan, Conference on the Social History of Jordan, Family and Society in the Late Nineteenth Century; The Establishment of the State; Changes and Challenges in the Twentieth Century; The Regional and International Context; Public Space, Identity and Democratization.

* March 25. Tel Aviv, Israel, Dayan Center. Prof. Farhad Kazemi, "Why Iran Chose Khatemi" dayancen@ccsg.tau.ac.il

* March 25. Jerusalem, Notre Dame Center. Israeli-Palestinian Roundtable Forum For Political Discussions, "How to Advance the Peace Process?" Israeli Minister of Science Miki Eitan and PLC Member Marwan Barghouthi, Secretary-General, Fatah, West Bank. Write: peace@netvision.net.il

* March 31, is the deadline for suggested papers or panels for the August 2000. 19th World Conference of Historians including several sessions on Middle East issues. write: Prof Renate Bridenthal, Graduate School and University Center CUNY 33 West 42 Street New York NY 10036-8099.

March 17-21. Minneapolis, Minnesota, International Studies Association: http://www.isanet.org

March 19 to June 11. The Middle East History department of Tel Aviv University is holding an 11-week lecture series dealing with contemporary issues. For schedule and ticket information, write Prof. David Menashri, Chair, Department of Middle East History, Gilman Building, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel or fax 972- 3-6409457.

March 19-21. Chicago, Illinois, "24th Annual Third World Conference: Visioning for the 21st Century: Globalization, Transformation and Opportunity," Third World Conference Foundation (TWCF): twcfusa@aol.com In addition, a pre-conference workshop, Internationalizing the Curriculum for Third World Studies: Do's and Taboos, March 18, is limited to 50 participants.

* March 23. Tel Aviv, Israel. Dayan Center, Tel Aviv, U. Robert Irwin, U London SOAS, "The Oriental Discourses in Orientalism." dayancen@ccsg.tau.ac.il

* March 23-25, Cairo, Egypt. "The Arabs and Britain: Changes and Exchanges," British Council and the Depts of English at Cairo and Ain Shams University. write: Basama El Husseiny, Arts Manager, British Council, Cairo: basma.husseiny@bc-cairo.sprint.com

March, 23-28. ECPR Workshops, Warwick UK, "Democracy, Public Opinion and the Use of Force in a Changing International Environment" Philip Everts, Everts@rulfsw.leidenuniv.nl or Pierangelo Isernia, Isernia@unisi.it or http://www.essex.ac.uk/ECPR

* March 25. deadline for submitting paper abstracts for the Institute for Political and International Studies (IPIS), April 27- 28 seminar in Iran on "Central Asia and the Caucasus: The Role of Regional Powers in Conflict Resolution and Economic Development." e-mail: ipis@www.dci.co.ir

* March 25-28. Amman: "Social History of Jordan, 19th-20th centuries," al-Urdun al-jadid Research Center: ujrc@go.com.jo

* March 29, Boca Raton, Florida, "Whither the Peace Process?" Participants include: Prof. Burton Caine, Director, Temple-Tel Aviv Program; Prof. Yoram Dinstein, President, Tel Aviv U; Ahmed Maher El Sayed, Ambassador to the US from Egypt; Marwan Muasher, Ambassador to the US from Jordan; Sa'eb Erakat, Minister of Local Government and Chief Negotiator, Palestinian Authority; Dore Gold, Ambassador to the UN from Israel; Aaron Miller, Deputy Special Negotiator, US State Department; Professor Shai Feldman, Director, Jaffe Center, Tel Aviv University. Tickets must be obtained in advance. Write: Prof. Burton Caine, b-caine@vm.temple.edu

March 31 deadline for a 1-page summary to propose a paper to the German/English-language conference on current research on Oman, June 20, Bonn, Germany. http://www.oman.org/bonn.htm or Joachim Duester jduester@pobox.com. Register via: Oman-Tagung, c/o Beta Publishing, attn. Mrs. Walter, Celsiusstr. 43, D-53125 Bonn, Germany, Fax (0049-228) 25 28 511.

April. "Urban Development: A challenge for Frontier Regions," Negev Center for Regional Development, Ben-Gurion University: http://www.bgu.ac.il/NCRD/ or Harvey Lithwick, lithwick@bgumail.bgu.ac.il

April 1 NY, NY USA, Gulf/2000 Project and School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia U. "Working In--and With--Iran: The State of the Art," To explore the variety of possibilities for exchanges with Iran and to share information about how such exchanges can be conducted. Speakers include: Gary Sick, Executive Director, Gulf/2000; Richard Bulliet, Middle East Institute, Columbia University; Baquer Namazi, Population Council, Cairo; Afsaneh Najmabadi, Barnard College; Mahmood Sariolghalam, Tehran, Visiting Professor, Ohio State University Seyed Kazem Sajjadpour, Islamic Republic of Iran Mission to the United Nations; and many others. Note: You must apply in advance to attend. Write: jac12@columbia.edu

April 1. Tel Aviv, Israel, Dayan Center, Ami Ayalon, "Civil Society and Traditional Society in Egypt," Annual Memorial Lecture in Honor of Professor Uriel Dann. dayancen@ccsg.tau.ac.il

April 3-5. Binghamton University, SUNY, "Aspects of Contemporary North Africa: Islamic Assertion, Ethnic Diversity, and the State." ldatto@binghamton.edu

April 4-18. Maghrebi Arts Festival, Binghamton University, SUNY: http://maghreb.net/writers/festival.htm

* April 6 Deadliine for proposals for May 8-9, Chicago, Annual Middle East History and Theory Conference. write: Michael Provence, prov@cicero.uchicago.edu

April 15-18. Miami University, Oxford, Ohio. National Council on US-Arab Relations, Ohio Model Arab League (MAL). Countries are still available for representation by student delegations. Brenda Pierce brenda@ncusar.org

* April 17, Fordham University, NY, NY. Maghrib Studies Dissertation Workshop, American Institute of Maghrib Studies,Write: Jim Ketterer jpk@cnsvax.albany.edu

* April 17-18. Cambridge, England. Cambridge U Centre of Middle Eastern Studies 6th International Conference and Exhibition on Multi-lingual Computing. "Information Super-Highways and Multi-lingual Computing." Includes product exhibition. Ahmad Ubaydli au100@hermes.cam.ac.uk

* April 24, Portland State University, CIRA, "Iran and the Region: Past, Present and Future Relations with its Neighbors." write: Dr. Nader Entessar, entesar@azalea.shc.edu or http://www-adm.pdx.edu/user/mesc.cira/

* April 27-28, Tehran, Iran. Institute for Political and International Studies (IPIS), "Central Asia and the Caucasus: The Role of Regional Powers in Conflict Resolution and Economic Development." ipis@www.dci.co.ir

MERIA offers you discounts on books and publications. We welcome special arrangements for our readers. To propose articles, items for publication, give others free subscriptions, or other correspondence, write:besa@popeye.cc.biu.ac.il

 

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