Oscar Rickett

London

Journalist slash other. Mostly for Middle East Eye. Also/ previously: the Guardian, openDemocracy, Vice, Africa Confidential, ITN, etc

Articles

BBC accused of 'political censorship' over failure to release Gaza medics documentary

4 days ago | middleeasteye.net | Oscar Rickett

The BBC has been accused of "political censorship" as it faces increasing pressure to broadcast a film it commissioned about Palestinian doctors working in Gaza. Over 600 prominent figures from the arts and media, including British film director Mike Leigh, Oscar-winning actor Susan Sarandon and Lindsey Hilsum, the international editor of Channel 4 News, have signed an open letter calling on the corporation to release Gaza: Medics Under Fire, which has been ready for broadcast since February.
Pakistan shoots down Israeli-made drones launched by India

1 week ago | middleeasteye.net | Oscar Rickett

Pakistan shot down Israeli-made drones launched by India into its airspace on Thursday, following a series of Indian strikes across the country on Wednesday. Pakistan’s military said it had shot down 25 Israeli Harop drones on Thursday, including in Karachi and Lahore. An Indian government source confirmed that at least one Israeli drone had been downed by Pakistan. Both sides view the military claims made by the other as propaganda.
Sudan cuts ties with UAE as Port Sudan reels from drone strikes

1 week ago | middleeasteye.net | Mohammed Amin |Oscar Rickett

Smoke hangs in the air above Port Sudan as Sudanese authorities struggle to contain fires caused by a series of drone attacks that have ravaged the city for three days. Port Sudan is currently Sudan’s de facto capital and the home of its government, which blames the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and its “regional sponsor”, the United Arab Emirates, for drone strikes that began early on Sunday morning.
'Stop Booking Apartheid' targets Booking.com's Israeli settlement profits

2 weeks ago | middleeasteye.net | Oscar Rickett |Peter Oborne

A coalition of workers and activists has launched a campaign targeting online travel agency Booking.com, which they accuse of profiting from Israeli war crimes. The “Stop Booking Apartheid” campaign, led by Palestinian and left-wing organisations including Progressive International and BDS Netherlands, is targeting Booking.com’s 55 listings in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.
ICJ urged not to throw Sudan's UAE genocide case out on a 'technicality'

2 weeks ago | middleeasteye.net | Oscar Rickett

A group of prominent international judges and legal experts have urged the International Court of Justice (ICJ) not to throw out Sudan’s genocide case against the United Arab Emirates on a “technicality”. The ICJ will deliver its emergency order in the case on 5 April, with the verdict expected to turn on the question of the UAE’s reservation to an article of the Genocide Convention.
Glasshouse Communism

1 month ago | znetwork.org | Oscar Rickett

In leafy Chingford, a workers’ co-operative has combined socialist principles with organic horticulture to create a long-lasting hub for community activism and productive labour. Close to Chingford Station in the suburbs of east London and along a path leading into Epping Forest, large iron gates stand at the entrance to Hawkwood Plant Nursery. Rows of fruit and vegetables are planted all around.
Oscar Rickett

1 month ago | znetwork.org | Oscar Rickett

In leafy Chingford, a workers’ co-operative has combined socialist principles with organic horticulture to create a long-lasting hub for community activism and…
Gaza genocide: How the hell did this happen, asks Pankaj Mishra

1 month ago | middleeasteye.net | Oscar Rickett |Mohamed Hashem

There are photos and videos of dead Palestinian children on social media every day. Having turned Gaza into a wasteland, killing tens of thousands in the process, Israel has this month broken the ceasefire returned to kill more. The end goal is surely ethnic cleansing, the removal of Palestinians from Gaza framed as the removal of Hamas from power. Western countries have aided and abetted this war, arming Israel, providing it with intelligence and covering for it diplomatically and rhetorically.
Glasshouse Communism

1 month ago | tribunemag.co.uk | Oscar Rickett

Close to Chingford Station in the suburbs of east London and along a path leading into Epping Forest, large iron gates stand at the entrance to Hawkwood Plant Nursery. Rows of fruit and vegetables are planted all around. Fields replete with raised beds and a forest garden provide the backdrop to a large glasshouse connected to a main building, from where the community food project Organic Lea is run.
Steve Witkoff and Tucker Carlson: Key Middle East points from US envoy interview

1 month ago | middleeasteye.net | Oscar Rickett

In a frank and wide-ranging interview with Tucker Carlson on Saturday, US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff said that negotiations to end Israeli attacks on Gaza were ongoing and that if Hamas “demilitarised” then “maybe they could stay” in the Palestinian enclave and “be involved politically”. “What does Hamas want? I think they want to stay there till the end of time. And they want to rule Gaza,” Witkoff said.