The provenance and technology of Near Eastern glass: Oxygen isotopes by laser fluorination as a complement to strontium

The ability to make rapid measurements on small samples using laser fluorination enhances the potential of oxygen isotopes in the investigation of early inorganic materials and technologies. delta O-18 and Sr-87/Sr-86 values are presented for glass from two primary production sites, four secondary production sites and a consumer site in the Near East, dating from Late Antiquity to the medieval period. delta O-18 is in general slightly less effective than Sr-87/Sr-86 in discriminating between sources, as the spread of measured values from a single source is somewhat broader relative to the available range. However, while Sr-87/Sr-86 is derived predominantly from either the lime-bearing fraction of the glass-making sand or the plant ash used as a source of alkali, delta O-18 derives mainly from the silica. Thus the two measurements can provide complementary information. A comparison of delta O-18 for late Roman - Islamic glasses made on the coast of Syria-Palestine with those of previously analysed glasses from Roman Europe suggests that the European glasses are relatively enriched in O-18. This appears to contradict the view that most Roman glass was made using Levantine sand and possible interpretations are discussed.

Die Grünen and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

This paper discusses the German Greens' recent policy on Israel and Palestine, from the beginning of the first red-green federal government to the present. It looks at Green Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer's diplomatic role in the Middle East, and the Greens' current very mild policy with regards to Israel, especially when compared to earlier Green attitudes to the region. This is explained with reference to both the continuing relevance of German history to German foreign policy, and the constraints that participation in the federal coalition - and supplying Germany's Foreign Minister - place on the Greens. The influence of history and power on the German Greens is further illustrated by a comparison of German Green attitudes to Israel with the US Greens' much more critical position.

Women, violence and nonviolent resistance in east Timor

A growing literature in peace and conflict studies assesses the relationship between women and nonviolence. Numerous national liberation fronts and academic critiques assess how women participate in nonviolent resistance from Tibet and West Papua to Palestine and Eritrea. However, many liberation struggles that include female nonviolent resistance remain undocumented, and this article aims to delve into one case study in particular. The article examines the nonviolent roles adopted by women in the East Timorese liberation struggle, a national liberation movement in which the participation of female combatants was low but nonviolent participation by women in the resistance movement overall was high. However, the consequences for such women was, and remains, shaped by the overarching patriarchal structures of both the Indonesian occupiers and East Timorese society itself Female nonviolent resistance was met with highly violent responses from Indonesian troops, especially in the form of rape and sexual exploitation. Yet, this study also found that women acting under religious auspices faced less violent responses overall. Interviews with East Timorese women are used to reveal some of the sexual dynamics of nonviolent action and reprisal. This material is placed in the context of theoretical work on gender, violence and nonviolence.

Wild plant seed storage at Neolithic East, Turke

Full analysis of eight seed samples collected in the 1960's excavations at Neolithic Catalhoyuk East, Turkey, is presented. Detailed investigation of the composition and context of the samples suggests that the Neolithic population collected, processed and stored seeds from Capsella sp. and Descurainia sp. (wild crucifers) for food use. In addition seeds of Vicia/Lathyrus sp. (wild vetch), Helianthemum spp. and Taeniatherum caput-medusae mixed with Eremopyrum type (grasses) were also found, some of which may have been used for food or other purposes. The analysis demonstrates that wild seed exploitation was a regular part of subsistence practice alongside the economic staple of crop production, and again demonstrates how diverse plant use practices were at the site.