I intended to limit the scope of this blog to all things Africa, you'd think it were a wide enough playing field! Having said that, the following link has nothing to do with the old cradle of humanity; it nevertheless touches on a lot of topics that are gaining importance on a truly global level, some issues I've addressed in previous posts. It is a NYtimes multimedia piece - interviews with four Palestinians in Gaza. They talk about their struggles due to international sanctions, which are due, but not entirely due to Hamas's politics. One of the segments recounts the problematic mingling of religions in a place and time of increasing religious orthodoxy and fundamentalism. One talks about the schism between Gaza and West Bank Palestinians. More than one talks about looking to the west as a long-shot hope for a better future.

If anything, it testifies to the increasing universality of these issues. And like I mentioned before, this issue of boundaries between countries and people is getting more and more convoluted. Ten years ago, people in Sudan identified themselves by ethnic group (the Dinka, the Hasania ... there are hundreds ...) today many will call themselves simply "Arab." Enough said for now. The link:
http://www.nytimes.com/packages/html/weekinreview/20071118_GAZA_FEATURE/index.html