Berliner Boersenzeitung - 'Nobody cares about us': US election doubts in West Bank

EUR -
AED 3.843876
AFN 71.46757
ALL 98.334246
AMD 408.921785
ANG 1.890704
AOA 954.443474
ARS 1053.32585
AUD 1.613486
AWG 1.883771
AZN 1.777411
BAM 1.957876
BBD 2.118145
BDT 125.3629
BGN 1.957013
BHD 0.39446
BIF 3099.055767
BMD 1.046539
BND 1.413685
BOB 7.275713
BRL 6.06951
BSD 1.049112
BTN 88.441624
BWP 14.331193
BYN 3.43314
BYR 20512.173424
BZD 2.114642
CAD 1.476149
CDF 3003.568546
CHF 0.92896
CLF 0.037025
CLP 1021.630219
CNY 7.576684
CNH 7.599007
COP 4588.813899
CRC 534.605448
CUC 1.046539
CUP 27.733296
CVE 110.379907
CZK 25.325311
DJF 186.808039
DKK 7.458059
DOP 63.219772
DZD 139.884617
EGP 51.926973
ERN 15.698092
ETB 130.810926
FJD 2.382918
FKP 0.826051
GBP 0.834804
GEL 2.857518
GGP 0.826051
GHS 16.522516
GIP 0.826051
GMD 74.304489
GNF 9040.497654
GTQ 8.100355
GYD 219.482679
HKD 8.143422
HNL 26.50985
HRK 7.465237
HTG 137.694658
HUF 410.442515
IDR 16664.414117
ILS 3.813119
IMP 0.826051
INR 88.232015
IQD 1374.256881
IRR 44046.230248
ISK 145.09192
JEP 0.826051
JMD 166.494914
JOD 0.742309
JPY 161.133064
KES 135.589536
KGS 90.828533
KHR 4210.423334
KMF 490.77458
KPW 941.885118
KRW 1464.203166
KWD 0.322093
KYD 0.874227
KZT 523.84534
LAK 23039.424621
LBP 93943.491644
LKR 305.273628
LRD 188.824765
LSL 18.967508
LTL 3.090159
LVL 0.633041
LYD 5.134443
MAD 10.539974
MDL 19.17733
MGA 4902.196931
MKD 61.570856
MMK 3399.119344
MNT 3556.14103
MOP 8.407012
MRU 41.716441
MUR 48.894341
MVR 16.169403
MWK 1819.1285
MXN 21.51026
MYR 4.672826
MZN 66.874137
NAD 18.967508
NGN 1761.461771
NIO 38.600552
NOK 11.639084
NPR 141.509665
NZD 1.794919
OMR 0.402907
PAB 1.049112
PEN 3.973312
PGK 4.225996
PHP 61.721228
PKR 291.376995
PLN 4.317163
PYG 8173.665089
QAR 3.826984
RON 4.97703
RSD 116.988424
RUB 108.818843
RWF 1432.404838
SAR 3.9296
SBD 8.781084
SCR 14.253917
SDG 629.495812
SEK 11.542347
SGD 1.411358
SHP 0.826051
SLE 23.782645
SLL 21945.414172
SOS 599.529847
SRD 37.145882
STD 21661.253876
SVC 9.179732
SYP 2629.461642
SZL 18.962102
THB 36.348931
TJS 11.182634
TMT 3.673354
TND 3.327532
TOP 2.451098
TRY 36.233815
TTD 7.125554
TWD 33.959925
TZS 2773.329504
UAH 43.536654
UGX 3887.120826
USD 1.046539
UYU 44.716123
UZS 13458.267417
VES 48.752124
VND 26595.184038
VUV 124.247268
WST 2.92151
XAF 656.646852
XAG 0.034486
XAU 0.000398
XCD 2.828325
XDR 0.802451
XOF 656.653133
XPF 119.331742
YER 261.556352
ZAR 18.95356
ZMK 9420.11208
ZMW 28.927667
ZWL 336.985279
  • RBGPF

    0.8100

    61

    +1.33%

  • RYCEF

    0.0200

    6.79

    +0.29%

  • RELX

    -0.1800

    46.57

    -0.39%

  • SCS

    0.4500

    13.72

    +3.28%

  • CMSC

    0.0578

    24.73

    +0.23%

  • BCC

    8.7200

    152.5

    +5.72%

  • GSK

    0.1900

    34.15

    +0.56%

  • RIO

    0.6300

    62.98

    +1%

  • NGG

    0.1500

    63.26

    +0.24%

  • BTI

    -0.0500

    37.33

    -0.13%

  • BP

    -0.4000

    29.32

    -1.36%

  • BCE

    0.2500

    27.02

    +0.93%

  • JRI

    0.1600

    13.37

    +1.2%

  • AZN

    0.7700

    66.4

    +1.16%

  • VOD

    0.1800

    8.91

    +2.02%

  • CMSD

    0.1200

    24.58

    +0.49%

'Nobody cares about us': US election doubts in West Bank
'Nobody cares about us': US election doubts in West Bank / Photo: Zain JAAFAR - AFP

'Nobody cares about us': US election doubts in West Bank

As Palestinian-American entrepreneur Jamal Zaglul stood by his olive press at the end of harvest season in the occupied West Bank, his mind was far away on next week's US election.

Text size:

Like other US passport holders living in Turmus Aya -- where they form the majority -- he was sceptical the ballot would bring change to the region.

"Here we have problems. Nobody (in the US) cares about us," said the businessman in his 50s.

Violence in the West Bank -- occupied by Israel since 1967 -- has surged since the Gaza war erupted after Hamas's unprecedented October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.

Zaglul spoke fondly of former US president Bill Clinton, under whose administration the landmark Oslo Accords were signed, creating arrangements between the Palestinians and Israel.

"This time we need to start changing. We have to have another party, a separate party, independents," Zaglul said. "The other ones, they're not helping us."

Fellow dual national Basim Sabri planned to vote for a third party candidate in protest after "eight years of miserable administration".

The Minnesota-based native of the northern West Bank did not mince words about the current White House occupant, calling Joe Biden a "war criminal".

He was equally critical of Biden's predecessor and current Republican contender Donald Trump, calling him a "maniac, racist".

Sabri said he would vote for Jill Stein, the perennial Green Party candidate who is on the ballot in nearly every battleground state this presidential cycle.

Stein ran in 2012 and 2016, securing just 0.4 percent and one percent of the vote, respectively.

- 'Overlooked' -

Deeply shocked by the Gaza war, Sabri hopes the United States will push more for peace.

"It's the only country in the world that's vetoing the decision of the majority of the world to stop the war and condemn Israel," he said.

Hamas's attack on Israel last year resulted in 1,206 deaths, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

Israel's response has led to the deaths of 43,259 Palestinians in Gaza, a majority of them civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory's health ministry, deemed reliable by the United Nations.

California resident Odeh Juma, who returns to Turmus Aya several times a year, pointed bitterly to US military support for Israel.

"As Palestinians, we feel our concerns -- like ending wars globally, in Palestine or Ukraine -- are overlooked in favour of the politicians' own electoral interests," he said.

Juma planned to watch election night coverage but would not cast a ballot.

"If we don't vote now, it will highlight the importance of the Arab, Palestinian and Muslim voices for future elections," he said.

There are about 172,000 Palestinian-Americans in the United States, according to a 2022 census survey, with many from swing states like Michigan and Pennsylvania.

Thousands of Palestinian Americans live in the West Bank, a community shaken by the killings of an American and two dual citizens this year.

- Fear -

Juma's son Adam said "people tend to be scared to vote for anybody, and especially for Trump".

He recalled that during Trump's first presidential run, some hoped he would be "different", but he dealt numerous blows to Palestinians once elected.

Trump's administration notably broke with US precedent by declaring it did not see Israeli settlements in the West Bank as illegal.

These settlements are considered illegal under international law.

Adam Juma has been following the election but will not vote, believing the United States no longer influences global conflict resolution.

"It won't change anything if we vote for anybody... It's not like how it used to be," he said.

Ramallah resident Leila said she voted for Stein.

"The ongoing genocide is at the top of my mind and Harris has done absolutely nothing to win my vote in that regard," she said.

Sanaa Shalabi, a Palestinian American, said she also planned to sit out the election.

"Here, no one cares about us... There is an American embassy here, but it does nothing," she told AFP.

"They do not stand with us. In fact, Israel is the one that controls America."

(B.Hartmann--BBZ)