“While Israel spins that EU labelling will hurt a few thousand Palestinian workers, in reality millions of Palestinians have been dispossessed of their economic resources,” writes Nur Arafeh. “And Israel’s occupation hurts Palestinians far more than EU labelling of settlement products could.”

“Talks of a European boycott does not stand up to a reality check,” EU Ambassador to Israel Lars Faaborg-Andersen said. “Europe is not boycotting Israel and Europe is not boycotting settlement products. Products from the settlements will continue to enter the EU market.”

“Not only is Israel factually and legally in the wrong, it needs Europe much more than vice versa; for the EU, Israel is a problematic ally whose actions too often undermine European interests and drive instability,” writes Daniel Levy.

Israeli restrictions and failure to investigate crimes against Palestinians mar the olive-picking season.

“The decision to begin construction in Jerusalem settlements underscores both Israel’s weakness in the international arena and Netanyahu’s weakness within his coalition,” write the editors of Ha’aretz.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday hinted at the possibility of an Israeli annexation of parts of the West Bank. “There’s all sorts of unilateral moves and sorts of directions. Wait and see. And they’re not necessarily in the direction that people think,” he said, refusing to elaborate.

The government is ignoring the construction of two new roads in the West Bank, one of them over private Palestinian land, which are meant to replace two other roads the Supreme Court ordered demolished. The state says the two new roads have never been challenged in court, so there is no reason they cannot be built.

Clashes broke out Wednesday morning in occupied East Jerusalem during a commemoration of two Palestinians who were killed after carrying out a deadly attack on a Jerusalem synagogue last year, witnesses said.

Israeli forces shot and killed a Palestinian in armed clashes north of Ramallah on Tuesday evening, with two others injured during an exchange of fire.

The decision by the Israeli government on Tuesday to outlaw the country’s main Islamic Movement marks a dangerous turning point in Israel’s relations with its large Palestinian minority, Palestinian leaders in Israel have warned.

The central committee of the Fatah movement on Tuesday rejected reports of Egyptian efforts to foster reconciliation between Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas and ex-Fatah strongman Muhammad Dahlan.