WAR: Dispatches & Dialogue Archives

22Nov

By Patti MohrNo Comments

Arms Sales, Military Industry, Diplomacy, WAR: Dispatches & Dialogue

When Weapon Sales Boomerang: The Case of John Gunther Dean

Looking Back in History: Weapons Used in 1980 Assassination Attempt Against a U.S. Ambassador Were Made in America John Gunther Dean survived the Nazi Holocaust as a child by immigrating to the United States in 1939. He became a naturalized citizen and went on to serve the country as ambassador to five countries: India, Thailand, Lebanon, Denmark, and the Khmer Republic. In the late 70s and early 80s when serving in Lebanon, the Lebanese were asking the United States to stop sending sophisticated weapons to Israel. Civilians in the southern part of the country were getting hammered by battles. Israel and its Lebanese Christian allies were clashing with PLO-aligned guerrillas. Peacekeeping forces were getting killed, along with civilians. Historic news clip about the assassinat...

4Sep

By Ali AltawilNo Comments

Middle East, Type of Post: Essays & Travel Writing, WAR: Dispatches & Dialogue

Poem: Gaza, Once a City

Gaza city, like a flower born of ashes that taught us how to love life. By Ali Altawil, M.D. There was a small homeland,gazing out over the seaas if guarding a dream,Its name was Gaza…Not just a city,but the heartbeat of a soulthat never knew surrender,A flower born of ashes,That taught us how to love life,Even as the shadow of deathhovered in its sky each evening.Gaza…Her simplicity shone brighter than any grandeur,And her people wove love from pain,They smiled through wounds,And dreamed,for dreaming ran in their veins like faith and blood.Gaza…She loved life…If not for herself,Then for her children,Those who knew nothing but how to adore her,For she was their mother, their child, their friend,The story we tell when time grows heavy,And we need a lesson in resilience. Gaza…The me...

18Jun

By Ali AltawilNo Comments

Human rights, Middle East, Type of Post: Essays & Travel Writing, WAR: Dispatches & Dialogue

A Poem from Gaza: “Inside a Hospital”

Al Aqsa Hospital: 'In The Hush Before the Storm, The Fear of Everything' Ali Altawil, M.D. is a general practitioner and writer bearing witness to and shedding light on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, capturing lived realities with a poetic voice. He works at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the heart of Gaza, where he and his family endure the same struggles as the people he serves. Through his profession and his words, he resists oppression and holds on to the hope of a better tomorrow. If you’d like to support his work, visit his GoFundMe page at https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-me-save-my-life-and-pursue-my-education. Inside a hospital in Gaza,What does the scene look like?Tear-filled eyes.Pale faces.Breaths held…in trembling chests.A silence, thick.But not the peaceful kind,no…...

25May

By Ali AltawilNo Comments

Human rights, Type of Post: Essays & Travel Writing, WAR: Dispatches & Dialogue

Poem: “Fragrance of Memory”

'Tell Your Children About Us,' Doctor In Gaza Writes Photo by Ali Altawil Copyright @alialtawil By Ali Altawil, M.D. Tell your children about us,That we cherish lifefar more than our enemy cherishes our demise,That we dance with joywhen a certain song graces our ears,That we delight in raising cats,That our souls glowin the presence of jasmine flowers,AndThat we walk barefoot in the rain,So the memory of the land may cleanse us,Returning us to the place where we belong,Scented with its sacred soil. Ali Altawil, M.D. is a general practitioner and writer bearing witness to and shedding light on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, capturing lived realities with a poetic voice. He works at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the heart of Gaza, where he and his family endure the same strug...

‘We Were Told They Would Welcome Us,’ Russian Soldier Says

28Feb

By Patti MohrNo Comments

Types of News: Brief, WAR: Dispatches & Dialogue

‘We Were Told They Would Welcome Us,’ Russian Soldier Says

February 28, 2022--In an extraordinary special session by the UN General Assembly, Ukraine's representative read out a text conversation between a Russian soldier and his mom. "Mom, I'm in Ukraine, there's a real war. I'm scared, we shoot at everything in a row, even at peaceful ones. We were told that they would welcome us, but they throw themselves under our military equipment and do not let us pass. They call us fascists. It's very hard for me." Photo of text messageFeb. 28 Special GA assembly Reportedly, the Russian soldier was killed in battle. While the GER cannot independently verify the texts, the message fits with what the Russian president has been saying in his recent speeches. Increduoulsy, Vladimir Putin urged the Ukranian military to "lay down your weapons and immedi...