Ramadan Begins, Occupation Remains

What We’re Reading

FMEP Resources

FMEP's Weekly Legislative Round-Up,

A round-up of Congressional letters, bills, hearings, and statements on all things related to Israel and the Palestinians.

FMEP's Weekly Settlement Report: May 26, 2017,

Includes reporting on the next High Planning Council meeting, a new outpost legalization committee, Kerem Reim updates, and more IDF deployments in West Bank ahead of Ramadan.

Occupation/Human Rights

Cabinet to discuss $50 million improvement plan for East Jerusalem,

The finance and Jerusalem affairs ministries are to present a joint plan to the cabinet Sunday to improve conditions for Palestinians living in East Jerusalem, Channel 10 News reported Thursday. The first two clauses — costing NIS 180 million ($50 million) — will deal with the need for better education and for improved sewage infrastructure as well as for more efficient removal of trash.

Israel to cut over a quarter of electricity provided to Gaza,

In two weeks’ time, Israel will cut over a quarter of the electricity it provides the Gaza Strip, the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) announced Thursday.

UN alarm over conditions for Palestinian prisoners,

The United Nations has called Israel to improve conditions for Palestinians in custody, expressing alarm over reports of “punitive measures by Israeli authorities” against hundreds of prisoners who are on hunger strike for nearly 40 days.

U.S.-Israeli/Palestinian Relations

'U.S. increased military aid to Israel ahead of Trump visit',

“The US has promised to maintain Israel’s qualitative advantage in the Middle East,” [PM Netanyahu] stated. Netanyahu then revealed that three days earlier, before US President Donald Trump’s visit to the Jewish state, “the US added another $75 million to the aid package for [Israel’s] missile defense program.”

The 'ultimate deal'? Trump's Middle East peace plan is actually 15 years old,

Diplomats report that the Trump administration has been urged to revisit the plan by Egypt, Jordan and Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas, who sounded unusually upbeat after visiting the White House last month. Abbas and the US president met again in Bethlehem on Tuesday, but Trump made no mention either of Israel’s occupation or an independent Palestinian state.

Palestinian Politics

The Prisoners’ Dilemma,

More than simply confronting Israeli prison authorities, the strike reflects and entrenches internal Palestinian political fissures—not just the ubiquitous Fatah–Hamas competition for hegemony, but also the intra-Fatah conflict between Marwan Barghouti’s supporters and opponents. Optimistic observers had initially hoped that the strike could serve as a rallying call to unite the fragmented Palestinian political landscape. Yet, as it enters its second month, the strike instead largely maps onto and contributes to Palestinian factionalism.

Hamas Publicly Executes 3 in Gaza After Killing of a Senior Leader,

Three men were executed in Gaza on Thursday, days after being found guilty of assassinating a top member of the militant group Hamas — a crime the group accuses Israel of ordering. Israel usually does not comment on such matters but has denied any part in the March killing. Two of the sentenced men were executed by hanging, a third by firing squad. The executions were carried out as a near-communal event, with nearly 3,000 people, from political and tribal factions, invited. Two hooded Hamas executioners manned the scaffolding.