Two days before the general election at the end of January, Israel again imposed a full closure on the Occupied Territories. It was done in the name of normality, which in itself has become a national value ('terror shall not prevail'), and in the name of democracy ('we are an integral part of the West'). Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were sealed off in their villages and towns, so that their masters - that is us, the Israelis - would enjoy the freedom to choose.

LRB 20 February 2003 | PDF Download