Latest news with #Palestinian
Express Tribune
an hour ago
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
Preserving Palestinian palates
Sami Tamimi, the acclaimed Palestinian chef who comprises half of the duo behind the popular Ottolenghi deli and restaurant empire (the other half is his fellow Jerusalemite and business partner, Israeli-British chef Yotam Ottolenghi), has paid tribute to this culinary tradition of "farming and foraging and eating what is growing in your backyard" in his forthcoming cookbook Boustany, or My Garden in Arabic, which will be released in the US on July 15. "The whole idea started from the COVID-19 lockdown," recalls Tamimi when speaking to Reuters. "When you're in a situation like lockdown, you really get homesick because you want to be with your family and eat the food that brings you comfort. I wanted, in a way, to transport myself to being with my family back home. But because I couldn't, I started cooking simple dishes [...] It started with me just writing these recipes and, six months later, I had 300." In Boustany, the chef talks about his family and his past without going into politics – primarily because the book was already finalised by October 7, 2023. However, in conversation with Reuters, Tamimi turns his attention to weightier matters, such as the importance of promoting and preserving the Palestinian people's rich culinary heritage — not only amid the destruction of Gaza, but in the face of what he sees as the longstanding appropriation of traditional Palestinian dishes. Erasure of Palestinian food "The thing that really winds me up is seeing so many Israeli restaurants opening in the UK and Europe and America that are basically selling our food in the name of Israeli new cuisine," he comments. "What they do is take a dish and take it out of context. They don't have any backstory about where this dish comes from, what kind of tradition is behind it. It gets worse when they don't even bother to change the name of the dish." The chef explains that maklouba (a traditional Palestinian dish of layered rice, meat and vegetables that is flipped before serving, earning its name meaning "upside down" in Arabic) appears on menus as maklouba; mujadara (a popular Levantine dish of lentils, rice and crispy onions) is mujadara. "I'm not saying all these dishes are Palestinian, but they have their own history and heritage and rituals, and claiming all of that I find it so frustrating," he laments. However, when it comes to preserving Palestinian cuisine, Tamimi knows there is a long way to go. "Luckily, we have some really talented chefs that are pushing the boat towards preserving and putting our food under the limelight in a good way," he acknowledges. "But it took a long time because, coming out of trauma, people are focusing on other things to rebuild and preserve. Food was the last bit." Without Israeli occupation Tamimi explains that he knew he wanted to learn "other cuisines" from a young age, and it was only later that he realised how important the food of his homeland was to him after he moved to Tel Aviv. "But I didn't want to do traditional Palestinian food because, first of all, it takes hours to make," he recalls. "And there's no market for it. It sounds horrible, but when you do traditional food like this in a restaurant, it's a bit like peasant food. People don't appreciate it." Later, however, Tamimi found a way through after experimentation. "I worked in a Californian grill place in Tel Aviv for a few years and I started to combine bases of Palestinian food into new ingredients," he remarks. "And it worked. It was fun because I could stay true to a dish but kind of elaborate on it, and this became my style. I want to think that if Israel didn't occupy Palestine, Palestinian food would be evolving into something that I do today. Cooking ultimately became Tamimi's way of imagining a Palestinian cuisine unhindered by decades of displacement, destruction and occupation. "I mean, people were kicked out of their country, people were losing their homes. In that situation you just stop and think, what are the things I can hold onto? And food was one of them," he says. Lingering guilt Younger Palestinians, it transpires, are far more receptive to Tamimi's endeavours than anyone else. "The older generation is probably more protective [of the original recipes] but the newer generation likes what I do," admits Tamimi. "I get it quite a lot from young Palestinians where they say some of the recipes that I do conveys the whole flavour of what their mom cooks, but it takes a quarter of the time. I think the older generation will probably laugh at me. What mess are you making with our food! But the newer generation are accepting it." Amid the destruction of Gaza and the deteriorating situation in the West Bank, Tamimi feels the pressure of preserving of his Palestinian culinary heritage. "I'm doing my bit by introducing more and more people to the culture, to the food, to what happened there," he maintains. "Because I feel like the more we talk about it, the more we put it under the spotlight, the more positive things will happen." The guilt of being away from home, however, is something he struggles to ignore. "I feel I have a responsibility, but I also feel bad because I'm away from home," he rues. "It's a price that I have to pay because if I was back in Jerusalem, I would never be where I am today because of its limitations. I'd probably be driving a bus!"
New Straits Times
an hour ago
- Politics
- New Straits Times
Trump says Gaza ceasefire is possible within a week
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump said on Friday he believes it is possible that a ceasefire in the Gaza conflict between Israel and Iran-backed Hamas fighters will be reached within a week. Trump, at an Oval Office event celebrating a Congo-Rwanda accord, told reporters that he believes a ceasefire is close. He said he had just been talking to some of the people involved in efforts to reach a cessation of hostilities between Israel and Hamas in the Palestinian enclave. Hamas has said it is willing to free remaining hostages in Gaza under any deal to end the war, while Israel says the conflict can only end if Hamas is disarmed and dismantled. Hamas refuses to lay down its arms. The war in Gaza was triggered when Hamas-led fighters attacked Israel on Oct 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. Gaza's health ministry says Israel's post-October 7 military assault has killed over 56,000 Palestinians. The assault has also caused a hunger crisis, internally displaced Gaza's entire population, and prompted accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice and of war crimes at the International Criminal Court. Israel denies the accusations. Interest in resolving the Gaza conflict has gathered momentum following the US and Israeli bombing of Iran's nuclear facilities. A ceasefire to the 12-day Israel-Iran conflict came into effect early this week. "I think it's close. I just spoke to some of the people involved," Trump said. "We think within the next week we're going to get a ceasefire." He did not say whom he had been speaking to, but noted that he was in near-daily contact with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during the Israel-Iran conflict. Trump's unexpected prediction of a possible ceasefire deal in the coming days came at a time when there have been few signs that the warring parties were ready to restart serious negotiations or move from entrenched positions. A spokesperson for US special envoy Steve Witkoff's office said they had no information to share beyond Trump's comments. Witkoff helped former President Joe Biden's aides broker a ceasefire and hostage release agreement shortly before Trump took office in January, but the deal soon unravelled. The Israeli embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Israeli Minister for Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer plans to visit Washington starting on Monday for talks with Trump administration officials about Gaza, Iran, and a possible White House visit by Netanyahu, according to a source familiar with the matter. Netanyahu said on Thursday the outcome of Israel's war with Iran presented opportunities for peace that his country must not waste. "This victory presents an opportunity for a dramatic widening of peace agreements. We are working on this with enthusiasm," Netanyahu said in a statement.
AU Financial Review
an hour ago
- Politics
- AU Financial Review
‘I think it's close': Trump says of potential Gaza ceasefire
Washington | US President Donald Trump said on Friday (Saturday AEST) he believes it is possible that a ceasefire in the Gaza conflict between Israel and Iran-backed Hamas militants will be reached within a week. Trump, at an Oval Office event celebrating a Congo-Rwanda accord, told reporters that he believes a ceasefire is close. He said he had been just been talking to some of the people involved in trying to reach a cessation of hostilities between Israel and Hamas in the Palestinian enclave. Reuters
Saba Yemen
2 hours ago
- Politics
- Saba Yemen
Al-Qassam Brigades target zionist enemy soldiers & vehicles in western line, north of Khan Younis
Gaza – Saba: Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), announced on Friday evening that they had struck a gathering of Zionist enemy soldiers and vehicles north of Khan Younis. In a brief statement received by the Yemeni News Agency (SABA), Al-Qassam clarified that they targeted the enemy forces and military equipment in the Western Line area, north of Khan Younis, with medium-caliber mortar shells. Earlier in the day, the Brigades, in coordination with Saraya Al-Quds, had shelled a gathering of Zionist enemy soldiers and vehicles infiltrating the vicinity of the Halima Mosque in Joret Al-Lout area, south of Khan Younis, with heavy mortar shells. This comes as part of the Palestinian factions' response to the genocidal crimes committed by the Zionist enemy, with American support, against the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023—including killing, starvation, destruction, and forced displacement—in defiance of international appeals and the International Court of Justice's orders to halt the aggression. Whatsapp Telegram Email Print
Saba Yemen
2 hours ago
- Politics
- Saba Yemen
Zionist enemy forces storm Kafr Malik near Ramallah & Al-Khader Town South of Bethlehem
Ramallah - Saba: Zionist enemy forces stormed the village of Kafr Malik, northeast of Ramallah, on Friday. According to the Palestinian News Agency (WAFA), local sources reported that a foot patrol of the enemy army raided Kafr Malik and broke into several homes. The sources noted that the raids focused on the area where settlers had carried out a bloody attack last Wednesday evening, resulting in the martyrdom of three Palestinians and the burning of a house and two vehicles. A video clip showed enemy soldiers tearing down pictures of the three martyrs from the village, who were killed while confronting the settlers' assault. Enemy Forces Also Raid Al-Khader South of Bethlehem Meanwhile, enemy forces stormed the town of Al-Khader, south of Bethlehem, overnight. WAFA reported that the forces deployed near the gate on the main road (Jerusalem-Hebron), closed the road leading to the old town, and detained several young men. The agency added that the enemy forces fired live ammunition and chased a number of youths. Settlers Attack Farmers in Shuqba and South Hebron In a separate incident, settlers attacked Palestinian farmers on their agricultural land in the town of Shuqba, west of Ramallah, on Friday evening. The settlers forced the farmers off land owned by one of them in the northwest of the town, threatening them with a machine gun. A video showed an armed settler pushing a young man and firing shots into the air when the farmers refused to leave. Additionally, armed settlers demolished an agricultural structure, razed land, and attacked homes and farmland south of Hebron on Friday. Activist Osama Mkhamreh told WAFA that a group of armed settlers from the "Ateniel" settlement used a bulldozer to destroy a 50-square-meter agricultural barracks in "Khallet Al-Farra," west of Yatta, owned by citizen Ahmed Abu Sabah. They also leveled surrounding farmland. In the "Ikhal Al-Homs" area, southeast of Yatta, armed settlers attacked the house of citizen Mohammed Abdullah Obeid, smashing windows and stealing furniture, equipment, and mobile phones from his wife and son to prevent them from documenting the assault. Enemy forces later detained Obeid for several hours for interrogation. The settlers also shattered the windows of a health clinic and released their cattle into farmers' fields and near their homes, destroying irrigation networks and uprooting numerous fruitful grapevines and trees. Whatsapp Telegram Email Print
