Based on a concept of human rights commitment that includes both a cognitive (rejection of human rights restrictions) and an affective component (concern for the victims of human rights violations), the present paper uses LatentClass Analysis in order to differentiate different forms of consistent and inconsistent human rights orientations, and relates them to participants’ assessments of the I...

In recent years German media coverage of the Middle East conflict has been accused of an anti-Israeli bias that reinforces old, widely held prejudices and stereotypes about Jews and supports the common accusation that Israel misuses the tragedy of the Holocaust to justify anti-Palestinian policies. In particular, there is the accusation that during and after the Gaza War the media portrayed Isr...

We report the case of a Palestinian American psychologist trained to work with psychologically traumatized patients, who consulted with one World Health Organization mental health practitioner assisting the people of Gaza during the Israeli invasion of December 2008. We describe the unresolved tension experienced by the consulting provider, between feelings of helplessness and horror associated...

BACKGROUND The purpose of this study was to investigate the distribution and association of selected risk factors for diabetes mellitus in a semi-rural Palestinian village. MATERIAL/METHODS We performed a cross-sectional, population-based study of 500 adults aged 30 to 65 in a semi-rural Palestinian village. The study included two phases: a household survey and an individual assessment utiliz...

IN “BRIDGING THE DIVIDE IN THE HOLY LAND” (News Focus, 21 Apr., p. 352), J. Bohannon discusses his view of how Israeli and Palestinian scientists are working together within the frame of the Israeli-Palestinian Scientific Organization (IPSO). The article ends on an optimistic note, with the Palestinian scientist Mukhles Sowwan stating that “science is a universal language, like music. It can ma...

BACKGROUND There is little published information on the coronary risk characteristics of Palestinian women. However, there are documented lifestyle differences as well as socioeconomic inequalities between Arab and Jewish women in Israel. OBJECTIVES To compare the risk factor characteristics of coronary heart disease patients in Palestinian and Israeli women. METHODS This study included 546...

BACKGROUND In 1994, the Palestinian Health Authority took over responsibility for primary health care (PHC) in Gaza Strip and West Bank. OBJECTIVES This paper reports on the Palestinian National Strategic Health Plan (PNSHP 1999--2003). The extent to which the PHC objectives were achieved is discussed, together with areas that still require improvement. METHODS This descriptive study used c...