NEW FROM FMEP
The Palestinian Struggle: the tip of the spear to moving towards a more just and egalitarian world (Occupied Thoughts podcast)
FMEP fellow Ahmed Moor speaks with Palestinian writer, scholar, and activist Tareq Baconi about his new book, What Now, On Palestine, Freedom and Our Global Future. The conversation examines Palestinian self-determination versus what it means for Jewish Israelis and Zionists to call for self determination. It also covers decolonization and what liberation could mean in Palestine and beyond.
Barred from Knesset Elections: Sami Abu Shehadeh on the State of Israeli “Democracy” (Occupied Thoughts episode)
FMEP Fellow Peter Beinart speaks with Sami Abu Shehadeh, the leader of the Balad Party who was recently told by the Supreme Court that he would be deemed a terrorist and banned from running in the upcoming Knesset elections. Hear Sami explain why he decided to resign from Knesset, and what he makes of Israeli “democracy.”
Why Settler Violence is Out of Control (Occupied Thoughts episode)
FMEP Fellow Peter Beinart speaks with journalist Dalia Hatuqa about what’s really going on in the West Bank. They discuss the settlers who are moving into new areas of the West Bank, why the Palestinian Authority doesn’t try to stop settler violence, and how the Israel army and the settlers have converged.
Reviewing NAZA (Occupied Thoughts episode)
FMEP Fellow Ahmed Moor speaks with journalist & researcher Mahmoud Mushtaha and researcher & writer Muhammad Shehada about the new Israeli documentary NAZA. All three are from Gaza; Mahmoud survived the genocide, leaving Gaza for the UK in 2024. They discuss Israeli impunity and the goal of the wholesale destruction of Gaza, and they articulate criticisms of the film. Also see Mahmoud’s review of NAZA for +972 Magazine, “The moment a human life becomes ‘collateral damage’” (Sept 11, 2026).
FMEP Legislative Round-Up October 23, 2026 (Lara Friedman)
- Bills, Resolutions; 2. Letters & Reports; 3. Hearings & Markups; 4. Selected Members on the Record; 5. Selected Media & Press releases/Statements
Settlement & Annexation Report: October 23, 2026 (Kristin McCarthy)
WEST BANK: Netanyahu Threatens Major WB Operation; IDF Reportedly Scales Up Outpost Removal; EAST JERUSALEM: Amana Advances New Sheikh Jarrah Plan; Demolition Warning in Al-Bustan/Silwan, New Report by Ir Amim Documents “State Architecture of Dispossession”; STATE-BACKED SETTLER TERROR; INTERNATIONAL SCENE: Canadian Complaint Targets Settlement Real Estate Sales; BONUS READS
GLOBAL/REGION
Israeli military conducts massive “power projection” operation near Iran’s border (Axios 10/21/26)
“Dozens of Israeli Air Force fighter jets conducted a sortie on Monday, flying as far as the Iranian border, according to Israeli and U.S. officials…The operation, more than 800 miles away from Israel, took place a week before the Israeli elections and on the same day Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at Israel’s Ovda Air Base. The sortie wasn’t connected to Hegseth’s visit…According to the sources, Israel notified the U.S. in advance and described the operation as a training exercise intended for “power projection” and aimed at deterring Iran from launching attacks against Israel ahead of the elections. However, some U.S. sources said they had the impression that Israel was hoping the Iranians would fire at the aircraft, providing a justification for launching strikes against Iran.” See also Hegseth meets Netanyahu on unannounced Israel visit (Axios 10/19/26); The War Tehran Believes Is Coming (Ryan Grim//Drop Site 10/21/26); US, Israel said to draft plans for resumed strikes on Iran after midterm elections (TOI 10/22/26);
New UK sanctions powers will enable action against supporters of illegal Israeli settlements (The Guardian 10/14/26)
The UK is expanding its sanctions powers to freeze assets and target entities enabling illegal Israeli settlements, obstructing humanitarian aid or unlawfully holding prisoners. The statutory instrument introducing the global human rights and international humanitarian law sanctions adds three new grounds to the 2020 regime: serious violations of international humanitarian law, obstruction of humanitarian assistance and serious violations of the right to liberty and security of person. Unlawful settlement activity will be captured through a breach of international humanitarian law, including the Geneva convention on occupation. The Israeli government closed the UK consulate last week in protest, forcing it to withdraw 21 diplomats and downgrade the consulate to the status of a mission. But the Israeli punishment does not appear to have deterred the UK government. The proposed new powers also extend government reach beyond direct perpetrators of wrongdoing to those who facilitate, incite, promote or support qualifying conduct, provide it with finance, goods or technology, conceal evidence of it or benefit from it. Banks and commercial entities could also fall within this remit as designation only requires reasonable grounds to suspect involvement. The proposed sanctions measures include asset freezes and prohibitions on making funds or economic resources available, travel bans and director disqualifications.” See also Report: Israeli ad-tech firm enables spyware targeting of at least 45 Al Jazeera devices (Committee to Protect Journalists 10/15/26); Sally Rooney says she can no longer sell books in UK due to Palestine Action support (The Guardian 10/14/26)
Netanyahu: Israel needs to prep ‘alternate economy’ to circumvent any global sanctions (TOI 10/23/26)
“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel should prepare its economy and banking sector for the possibility of harsh global sanctions. In an interview aired today with the Channel 10 economic TV network, Netanyahu is asked how concerned he is about such sanctions affecting Israel’s economy, pointing to broad UK sanctions on settlements announced last month…In addition, Netanyahu says during the interview, “you have to understand that there could be sanctions. And banking sanctions mean you need to organize an alternate economy that can circumvent them,” pointing to “currencies that get around this,” including the blockchain cryptocurrency network. The blockchain is “one of the” options Israel is exploring to circumvent such possible sanctions, “and I’ve already asked for a plan to be prepared for that,” Netanyahu adds.” See also Instead of Averting Sanctions, Netanyahu Offers Israelis an Iran-Style Blockchain Economy (Haaretz 10/23/26); Doctors, Engineers and Computer Scientists Leave Israel. Researchers Sound Alarm (Haaretz 10/21/26);
Israel’s Destruction of Southern Lebanon Intensified After the Cease-Fire (NYT 10/12/26)
“The cease-fire ended the worst of the fighting between Hezbollah and Israel. But it did not end Israel’s remaking of southern Lebanon. Today, 48 of the roughly 60 villages and towns within Israeli-occupied southern Lebanon are mostly leveled, the Times analysis shows. The scale of Israel’s systematic demolition has fueled fears among many Lebanese that Israel is seeking to permanently empty the territory of its population.”
Abbas postpones Palestinian elections, sets presidential poll for September 2027 (Reuters 10/10/26)
“Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday postponed legislative elections due next month until September 11, 2027, and called a presidential poll for the same date, blaming Israel and the security situation in the Palestinian territories for the delay. Abbas’ decree cited “obstacles posed by Israeli measures” and the need to establish suitable political, security and on-the-ground conditions for “free, fair and inclusive elections”, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported…There had been serious doubts that the Palestinian Authority vote would go ahead next month. The Palestinians have not held legislative or presidential elections since 2005-2006, after which Abbas’ rival, the Islamist group Hamas, seized control of Gaza, ousting his loyalists. Abbas has governed by decree since his presidential mandate expired in 2009.” See also Palestinian Authority Formally Delays Elections, Despite Western Pressure (NYT 10/10/26);
GAZA
Cuts force World Food Programme to end support for half a million Palestinians in Gaza (The Guardian 10/19/26)
“This winter is likely to deepen hunger for Palestinians in Gaza, after sweeping aid cuts forced the UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) to end support for more than half a million people each month, the agency’s director for Palestine said…This summer, WFP programmes helped feed three-quarters of Gaza’s population, about 1.6 million people, but funding has fallen by more than half from 2025 levels…As a result, from October, aid has been scaled back to 1.1 million people each month. Cuts to deliveries of ration boxes, cash stipends to buy food in markets, and hot meals at community kitchens have already been rolled out…A year of large aid shipments ended a famine declared in summer 2025 and reduced the most severe hunger, but without steps to rebuild Gaza’s economy, most families still rely on food handouts…Two-thirds of the population in Gaza face crisis levels of food insecurity, phase three under the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), which is used to assess if a population is approaching famine.” See also UN Food Agency to Cut Aid to 500,000 Gazans Amid Funding Shortfall (Haaretz 10/19/26); Israel blocks construction of key Gaza base created by Trump peace board (The Guardian 10/14/26);
Israel-Backed Palestinian Militias Terrorize Displaced Families in Gaza (Abdel Qader Sabbah & Sharif Abdel Kouddous//Drop Site 10/19/26)
“Over the past year, since a “ceasefire” agreement went into effect, attacks by Israel-backed Palestinian militias have become increasingly frequent in Gaza, particularly targeting Palestinians living close to the “yellow line”—the demarcation of Israel’s line of control that runs north to south along the Gaza Strip roughly parallel to the coastline. Israel has also imposed another boundary called the orange line, which in some places encroaches more than 1 kilometer beyond the yellow line, taking over even more Palestinian land. On the western side of these lines, virtually the entire Palestinian population of Gaza has been corralled into an ever shrinking space. On the eastern side, the Israeli military has violently reconfigured the landscape, razing the area to the ground and building dozens of fortified bases and roads—establishing a permanent presence instead of preparing for a phased withdrawal as outlined in the ceasefire agreement. Israeli forces regularly bomb, shell, and shoot Palestinians on the western side in violation of the “ceasefire,” killing over 1,500 men, women, and children over the past 12 months. The Israeli military has also armed and equipped several Palestinian militias that operate on the ground, conducting raids and terrorizing people mostly living close to the yellow line. Large scale raids are conducted in coordination with the Israeli military, who have backed them up with artillery and aerial support. Many of the militia leaders in Gaza who rose to power in collaboration with Israel during the genocide are former gang leaders with a history of criminal activity, were associated with jihadi groups, or are former Palestinian Authority security forces that were all sidelined after Hamas gained control of the enclave in 2007.”
Gaza’s buildings are collapsing on top of us. But there’s nowhere else to shelter (Ibtisam Mahdi//+972 Magazine 10/13/26)
“Dozens have been crushed to death while Israel prevents reconstruction, leaving families with an impossible choice: to live in war-torn structures at risk of caving in, or flimsy tents exposed to the elements.” See also Pulling Out Teeth Just to Live: How Israel Has Devastated Dental Care in Gaza (Mohanad El-Hemrawi//Drop Site 10/14/26)
Debunking Israel’s latest list of ‘terrorist’ journalists in Gaza (Muhammad Shehada//+972 Magazine 10/7/26)
“The evidence against the 170 media workers named in ‘The Press Files’ includes empty pages, clearly edited documents, and unverifiable snippets.”
Israeli Resettlement Activists Set up Outpost Near Gaza Border (Haaretz 10/16/26)
“Dozens of Israeli activists from the pro-settlement Nachala movement entered a forest near the Gaza border overnight and set up an outpost of tents and temporary structures, declaring the outpost a new settlement and calling on the public to join them…Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi arrived on scene to show his support for the activists…The Nachala movement is headed by Daniella Weiss, a veteran activist in the Gush Emunim settlement movement, who appeared in a 2025 BBC documentary by Louis Theroux about West Bank settlers and was interviewed by British commentator Piers Morgan. Canada and the United Kingdom have imposed sanctions on Weiss for her role in supporting and facilitating violence against Palestinians. In July, Israeli cabinet ministers and coalition lawmakers joined a march toward Gaza organized by Nachala, calling for Jewish resettlement of the Strip”
RIVER TO THE SEA
Netanyahu orders ‘very extensive’ operation in West Bank after two Israeli soldiers killed (Guardian 10/23/26)
“Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered the army to prepare for a “very extensive” operation in the occupied West Bank after two Israeli soldiers and two Palestinians were killed in an exchange of fire near a checkpoint in Hebron. The Israeli prime minister said the military would go house to house and demolish homes, in an operation on a scale unseen in the occupied West Bank for decades, after the Israeli military said it had thwarted a “terror attack” by two armed Palestinians on Friday. Tensions are high before next week’s election…Netanyahu’s office later said it had instructed security forces to immediately cordon off Hebron and prepare for a full closure of the West Bank starting on Friday…During a visit to Hebron after the attack, Netanyahu later said Israeli forces would enter the neighbourhood of the attackers and displace its residents. He said the military would apply a model previously used in refugee camps in the northern West Bank.” See also IDF demolishes buildings near Hebron in response to West Bank shooting attack (TOI 10/23/26); Two IDF Soldiers Killed in West Bank Shooting Attack (Haaretz 10/23/26); Israel launches collective punishment campaign in Hebron after two soldiers killed (The Guardian 10/23/26);
Israel election 2026: Netanyahu may be weak but the right wing remains as strong as ever (Meron Rapoport//Middle East Eye 10/23/26)
“On a personal level, Netanyahu is weak. His Likud party is set to lose 10 to 15 seats, around a third of its current total. But while the right-wing prime minister may be weak individually, the right-wing mentality of Israeli voters remains very strong. There are at least three far-right parties that have the deportation of Palestinians as part of their agenda. Polls suggest that together these parties will win around 20 seats next week – a sixth of the total. As for the opposition, we do not see a unified group of parties with a clear political agenda. There are just two things they can all agree on: Netanyahu must leave office and the ultra-Orthodox should serve in the army…Gabi Eisenkot, the military chief of staff turned chief rival of Netanyahu, is heralded as Israel’s centre-left figure of hope. Yet he has promised to develop existing settlements and has several settlers, ex-settlers and right-wingers on his electoral list, including people who supported Netanyahu’s highly controversial judicial reforms. And while he has previously opened the door for the participation of parties representing Palestinian citizens of Israel, criticism of that stance from key allies has prompted him to pour cold water on the prospect. No one really knows what to expect from Eisenkot. He has certainly tried to portray a quite right-wing image to the domestic Israeli public, while seeming more liberal to the international community…Importantly, there’s almost zero talk about where Israel is heading, and what will happen with Gaza, Lebanon, the occupied West Bank and Iran.” See also 50 shades of right: An Israeli election primer (Ben Reiff//+972 Magazine 10/23/26); ‘The biggest motivation is fear’: High turnout among Israel’s Palestinians could unseat Netanyahu (The Guardian 10/23/26); Trump offers ‘warrior’ Netanyahu ‘complete and total endorsement’ for reelection (TOI 10/18/26); How Netanyahu could attack Iran to force Israel into unity government after elections (Al Monitor 10/23/26); 50,000 Israeli expats fly home to vote in potential boon to Netanyahu rivals (Al Monitor 10/23/26); The Arab Kingmaker in Israel’s Election Who Wants a Partnership With Jews (NYT 10/16/26);
Rights group reports 672 incidents of settler violence since start of olive harvest 1 month ago (TOI 10/23/26)
“More than 670 incidents of settler violence have taken place since the start of the Palestinian olive harvest nearly one month ago, according to the Yesh Din rights group. The 672 incidents since September 27 amount to an average of more than 25 incidents per day and have been taking place in 194 Palestinian communities across the West Bank, Yesh Din says. The attacks include 135 incidents of physical violence, 106 incidents of blocking Palestinians from harvesting their olive trees, 176 incidents of theft and property damage and 49 incidents of tree vandalism.” See also Top Settler Rabbi Rules Jews May Harvest Olives From Palestinian-Owned Groves (Haaretz 10/16/26)
Israeli Settlers Attack Palestinians and European Officials in West Bank (NYT 10/17/26)
“Masked Israeli settlers attacked Palestinians and European diplomats in the West Bank who were participating in the annual olive harvest on Saturday, just a day after a similar assault injured several Palestinians and a U.S. journalist. The episode took place in Taybeh, a Christian town north of Jerusalem, when Palestinians were gathering olives alongside French, Polish and Belgian diplomats who were in attendance to show solidarity, residents, local officials and witnesses said…Jean-Noël Barrot, the French foreign minister, said in a statement that Bernard Baudoux, the mayor of Aulnoye-Aymeries in the country’s north, was “violently assaulted by extremist settlers in the West Bank.” He called on Israel to “put an end to this criminal violence.”’ See also Guardian reporter filmed masked militants seconds before West Bank attack on French mayor (The Guardian 10/18/26);
U.S. Officials Condemn West Bank Attacks as Netanyahu Casts Doubt on Them (NYT 10/18/26)
“In public statements over the weekend, Mr. Netanyahu allowed that there was a “scourge of violence” but said what happened in the attacks was still unclear, despite video footage of them. His office also said they may be part of “a coordinated campaign to smear Israel.” See also Police arrest 11 suspects after West Bank settler attacks on journalist, EU diplomats (TOI 10/19/26); Israeli Settlers Attack Palestinians and Washington Post Journalist in West Bank (NYT 10/16/26);
Heidi Levine recounts how Palestinian youths helped save her in settler attack (The Guardian 10/21/26)
“The Washington Post photojournalist who was attacked and seriously injured by Israeli settlers in the West Bank on Friday has described how she was saved with the help of local Palestinians. Heidi Levine sustained four fractured vertebrae, two broken ribs and four puncture wounds when she was knocked to the ground and repeatedly beaten by a crowd of masked settlers while she and other journalists were covering the olive harvest in the Palestinian village of Abu Falah, north of Ramallah. It is unclear whether the puncture wounds were caused by knives or other weapons. Levine said a witness to her attack had seen nails sticking out of some of the wooden clubs wielded by her attackers…“They started kicking me and beating me with sticks. I can’t even count how many times, probably more than a hundred times. I actually tried playing dead so that they would stop. But it didn’t work.”…Witnesses said the beating only ceased when young Palestinian men used slingshots to aim stones at settlers forcing them back, allowing another American journalist, Jasper Nathaniel, to reach Levine and, with other reporters, help her to safety. “The shabab [Palestinian youth] put themselves in front and were trying to keep them [the settlers] away, keep a protective shield, which was amazing. It was like a biblical battle,” Levine said.” See also Washington Post journalist hospitalized after Israeli settler attack in West Bank (Al Monitor 10/16/26); 11 Reported Wounded, Including U.S. Journalist, in Settler Attacks on Olive Harvesters Across West Bank (Haaretz 10/16/26); Record-breaking 200+ Israeli settler attacks on Palestinian olive harvest in West Bank, UN says (Drop Site 10/16/26); Israeli settlers attack olive farmers and Washington Post journalist in West Bank (The Guardian 10/16/26);
Israel Held Most Palestinian Minors It Jailed in 2025 in Solitary, Nearly All Unsentenced (Amira Hass//Haaretz 10/16/26)
“Prison Service data show 351 of 635 minors in custody were put in solitary, 92 percent of them unsentenced, including 115 held in administrative detention without charge. Some were isolated up to eight times…More than half of the minors held in Israeli prisons in 2025, the vast majority of them Palestinians, were placed in solitary confinement at least once, including five boys aged 13 to 14, according to data obtained by two Israeli human rights organizations.” See also Tied up and tortured: Israel using US-made electroshock weapons on Palestinian detainees (The Guardian 10/22/26); Israeli forces raid Palestinian NGOs in occupied West Bank (Al Jazeera 10/13/26)
Choke Points (Lama Rabah, Sabrina Slipchenko, Charles Boutaud, Firas Tawil, Elena DeBre//Wired 9/30/26)
“Since 2023, Israel’s fragmentation of Palestine, underway for generations, has accelerated. The West Bank has, for the nearly 3.5 million Palestinians who live there, ceased to exist as a contiguous territory. According to the most recent UN data from December 2025, at least 925 fixed and temporary checkpoints, metal gates, roadblocks, and earth mounds divide the West Bank. (A Palestinian governmental commission reported this month that the number is now 942.) This fracturing has torn families apart, stifled the economy, and obstructed access to essential services such as hospitals and schools. Israel has never publicly listed the checkpoints it operates, their staffing hours, or their closure times. On the ground, Google Maps is practically useless for Palestinians; it is blind to the checkpoints and tries to route drivers onto roads reserved for Israeli-plated cars. Instead, citizens have developed their own ad hoc networks to inform each other of closures. As far as we know, no organization has used that network—combined with new datasets and on-the-ground reporting—to measure what this does to daily life. Over 18 months, WIRED, Lighthouse Reports, Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism (ARIJ) and the Palestine Reporting Lab investigated the system that has carved the West Bank into cantons and measured what it cost people to move through it.” See also ‘A race against time’: Israel’s settlement drive is rapidly transforming Jenin (Shatha Yaish//+972 Magazine 10/5/26)
Israeli military detain US and UK volunteers in West Bank including Democratic NY politician Brad Lander (Guardian 10/21/26)
“The Israeli military has detained about 80 US, Israeli and British volunteers helping Palestinians harvest olives near Bethlehem, including the New York Democratic congressional nominee Brad Lander, several rabbis and Israel’s former deputy attorney general. “I’ve been detained by the IDF, along with a group of rabbis and volunteers,” Lander posted from a bus taking him to a police station. “We were simply harvesting olives in a grove near Nahalin in the West Bank. The occupation is a crime under international law. Harvesting olives isn’t a crime under any law I know.”’ See also Israel detains then frees dozens of Americans, including Congress nominee, in West Bank (NPR 10/21/26); Rabbi detained by Israeli forces in West Bank speaks out (NPR 10/21/26);
U.S. SCENE
The Art of the Deal: Jared Kushner’s Hacked Phone Revealed His Secret Negotiations—Including More Than $700 Million in Transfers (Matthew Cole//Vanity Fair 10/22/26)
“An exclusive excerpt from Princes and Thieves: Jared Kushner and Mohamed bin Zayed’s Secret Plot to Remake the Middle East examines how bank accounts linked the president’s son-in-law—and former senior adviser—to Israel, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia.”
AIPAC to Stop Officially Endorsing Candidates as Its Backing Becomes Political Liability (Arno Rosenfeld//Haaretz 10/22/26)
“AIPAC announced Wednesday that it would no longer issue official endorsements of congressional candidates, make direct campaign contributions through its political action committee or channel member donations to candidates. The pro-Israel lobbying group will continue to operate United Democracy Project, its super PAC, which has poured tens of millions of dollars into contested races and helped turn the pro-Israel advocacy group into one of the most controversial political actors in the country.” See also AIPAC halts endorsements and direct contributions to candidates (NPR 10/21/26); New Documentary Examines Whether AIPAC Should Register as a Foreign Agent (Truth Out 10/22/26);
New York City Comptroller Backs Off Promise to Invest in Israeli Bonds (NYT 10/14/26)
“vowed to buy bonds from Israel after his predecessor opted in 2023 not to renew them. Mr. Levine continued his pledge after he won the race and took over the office this year, defending the investments as recently as April, while Israel remained mired in international conflict. Now, in his 10th month in office, Mr. Levine is backing off his campaign promise. In a recent interview in his Lower Manhattan office, Mr. Levine, a Democrat, said he and his investment team had decided not to purchase bonds from the state of Israel. He insisted he made the decision entirely on financial grounds, while acknowledging the fraught nature of his walking away from any stance of public support of Israel…The organization Jewish Voice for Peace titled its news release responding to the news, “MAJOR BDS VICTORY IN NEW YORK CITY: Bowing to Grassroots Pressure, Comptroller Mark Levine Reverses Pledge to Invest in Israel Bonds,” even though Mr. Levine has said he does not support the B.D.S. movement.”
In the Michigan Senate Race, Mike Rogers Is Stoking Jewish Fear. Will It Work? (Alex Kane//Jewish Currents 10/22/26)
“Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers compared Michigan to Nazi Germany on Sunday, as he continued a campaign that critics charge is employing an ethnic divide-and-conquer strategy to try and convince Jewish Democrats to join his coalition rather than that of his Democratic opponent, Abdul El-Sayed…Rogers, who has launched repeated Islamophobic attacks on El-Sayed throughout the campaign, is trying to appeal to white Christians, Black voters, and Jews by claiming that El-Sayed has ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, that his rhetoric endangers Jews, and that he cares more about foreign policy than the domestic concerns of Black Detroiters.” See also Rogers describes El-Sayed as a national security threat in final Michigan Senate debate (JI 10/22/26);
Most voters in key states want to block US arms transfers to Israel (Responsible Statecraft 10/21/26)
“A majority of likely voters in each of six key swing states — Georgia, Iowa, Maine, North Carolina, Ohio, and Texas — say they approve of measures to block the transfer of bombs to Israel, according to a new poll released Wednesday by the Institute for Middle East Understanding (IMEU) and conducted by the YouGov data analytics firm. The poll also found that majorities or strong pluralities of 3,200 respondents in the six states favor “cutting $3.3 billion in taxpayer-funded weapons to Israel” and believe the war in Iran benefits Israel more than the United States. As in other recent polls, the new survey, which was conducted from late September to mid-October, found that self-identified Democrats and Independents were significantly more likely to oppose more military transfers to Israel than self-identified Republicans in each state, although at least one-third of Republicans in all of the states except North Carolina (26%) said they supported blocking bombs to Israel.” See also Democrats Need a Tough New Approach to Israel, Even if Netanyahu Loses (Jon Finer//NYT 10/23/26); Emory Hillel Fired its Rabbi Over Her Fiancé’s Criticism of Israel (Josh Nathan-Kazis//Jewish Currents 10/15/26)
PERSPECTIVES//LONG READS
A System of Destruction (Ahmed Moor//The Nation 10/20/26)
“The tools of totalitarianism exist, and they are here to stay. What the Israelis have developed and utilized to eliminate life in the overwhelming majority of Gaza, every other government either possesses or will possess in the future. We are charged, as citizens of a constitutional democracy, with legislating protections for our civil liberties. I only hope that NAZA acts as a clarion call for people around the world. The film shows us one version of the future, which may be, in the end, one of its most meaningful achievements. But it also reveals how far along the path we’ve traveled. The threat has arrived—no quaint benevolence here—and it must be stopped.” See also NAZA: Netanyahu orders identification and prosecution of film’s interviewees (The Guardian 10/12/26);
Israel’s election won’t change the renewed reality of political apartheid (Areej Sabbagh-Khoury//+972 Magazine 10/22/26)
“Palestinians inside Israel have never enjoyed equal citizenship. Their status is better understood through the concept of settler colonial citizenship, a term I developed with Nadim Rouhana, to describe a political structure where one group is granted greater power by the state over land, immigration, the distribution of resources, and the shaping of public space, while the indigenous group is given citizenship without equal national status. Citizenship does not abolish this hierarchy; it operates within it…The message to Palestinian citizens is clear: You may vote, but only within a political space whose borders are drawn for you by the Jewish majority. You may organize, but only within limits that institutions controlled by the Jewish national group define as legitimate. You may be citizens, but you do not possess equal power to determine the terms of your own political participation. Abu Shehadeh’s disqualification marks a transition from settler-colonial citizenship to political apartheid.” See also Jewish Israelis must do more than stand together with Palestinians (Himmat Zoubi//+972 Magazine 10/19/26); Palestinian Voters Could Determine Israel’s Future (Rula Hardal//NYT 10/22/26);
A Jewish Currents Guide to the Israeli Elections (Josh Nathan-Kazis//Jewish Currents 10/20/26)
“From where we sit here in the US, it looks a bit like there’s nothing at stake next week. The Zionist right and the Zionist center are aligned in their opposition to Palestinian liberation, and the Zionist center left often seems willing to go along with them. So what would change if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu loses? My initial thought, in fact, was to headline this article something like, “The Israeli Elections Don’t Matter,” and to be very cynical and flip about the whole thing. But then I talked to some people. “Palestinians on the ground desperately need oxygen,” Amjad Iraqi, senior Israel/Palestine analyst at the International Crisis Group, told me. The end of Netanyahu’s 17 years of nearly-uninterrupted domination of Israeli politics wouldn’t end the occupation. But it would almost certainly unseat Itamar Ben-Gvir, the Kahanist who as national security minister wields control over Israel’s prisons and police, and Bezalel Smotrich, the fascist minister of finance, who also has enormous influence over the West Bank. “What I’m being told from the political prisoners’ view is you need to change Ben-Gvir,” Abed Abu Shehadeh, a political activist and community organizer in Jaffa, told me last week. And for Palestinians in the West Bank, he said, “it matters if Smotrich is involved.” There’s no likely outcome of this election that’s going to feel good. But things can always get worse. “I listen very carefully to my Palestinian friends,” said Orly Noy, an editor at the Israeli news outlet Local Call, a member of the board of the human rights group B’Tselem, and a parliamentary candidate with the Joint List, a coalition of Palestinian parties. “Palestinian citizens inside Israel say, ‘We are next in line, and they will deport us forcefully.’” The elections matter, then, if only to ease the extraordinarily dire situation into which the current government has pressed Palestinians. “Nobody’s talking about change,” Abu Shehadeh said. “Everybody’s talking about, how do we minimize damage, and how do we just survive this point in history?”’ See also: Eisenkot is trying to outflank Netanyahu on the right. It’s a failed strategy (Amos Brison//+972 Magazine 10/21/26); Why Smotrich still defines the horizon of Israeli politics (Avi-ram Tzoreff//+972 Magazine 10/20/26); Days away from Israeli elections, a ‘sour mood’ pervades the Haredi street (Eli Bitan//+972 Magazine 10/15/26);
Disarming Resistance: The Trilateral Framework Agreement (Jaber Suleiman//Al Shabaka 10/14/26)
“On June 26, 2026, Lebanon, the US, and the Israeli regime signed a Trilateral Framework against the backdrop of fierce military attacks on Lebanon and the invasion of its south. This aggression was part of the broader US-Israeli regional assault that also devastated Iran, Syria, and Palestine, upending the geopolitical order. In this commentary, we speak with Al-Shabaka policy analyst Jaber Suleiman, who examines pivotal questions about this framework agreement and its implications for Palestinian refugees in Lebanon and the liberation struggle more broadly. He emphasizes the grave implications of this agreement, as it makes Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory conditional on the disarmament of Hezbollah, thereby holding the resistance factions and the Lebanese state responsible for ending the war and the occupation, while absolving Israel of accountability.”
The Blueprint (Mahmoud Khalil//Equator 9/24/26)
“Imprisoned for no crime, I discovered my arrest was a message: speak out for Gaza, and we will come for you”
The Brutality of One (Abdullah Hany Daher//Jewish Currents 10/22/26)
“A calendar is for people who have somewhere to arrive. On Tuesday, you have an appointment; November prepares the ground for winter; the year closes, then opens cleanly onto the next. But after 1111 days of Israel’s genocide, time no longer progresses in an orderly fashion. For us in Gaza, time has become a wall of vertical scratches—dull, identical marks etched with a nail, signifying nothing more than the blunt fact of endurance.” See also An Accounting of Three Years of Horror in Gaza, and Beyond (Josh Nathan-Kazis//Jewish Currents 10/6/26)
‘We Will Not Forgive’: Gazans Rage at Hamas for the October 7 Gamble (Amira Hass//Haaretz 10/13/26)
‘“On that accursed day, they pushed Gaza off the edge of the cliff … then picked up their phones to find the best angle for the shot,” Gazan writer and poet Ni’ma Hassan wrote on her Facebook page on October 7. A few hours later, she posted again, perhaps responding to readers who had attacked her for criticizing Hamas, as she has done before: “Even after three years, they tell us that the outcome is what counts and victory is near. By God! Even if you build paradise […]we will not forgive what has happened and is still happening to us.” Hasan writes openly what many in Gaza say among themselves and some put into writing, with varying degrees of boldness and bluntness. They see no contradiction between criticizing Hamas and recognizing that Israel chose to destroy Gaza and their lives there, and even declared its intention to do so. Their anger at Hamas over what they describe as a strategic mistake, an adventure, a gamble or even a conspiracy does not diminish their loathing for Israel or their knowledge that this endless war is part of Israel’s longstanding policy against the Palestinian people. Journalist Hamed Jad, the Gaza bureau chief for the Ramallah-based daily Al-Ayyam, also recalled Hamas’ promises of a decisive victory after the terrible suffering. He, too, was writing on the third anniversary of “Al-Aqsa Flood,” Hamas’ name for the October 7 attack. About a year after the attack, at a press conference with Khalil al-Hayya, now chairman of Hamas’ political bureau, Jad asked: “Can you name a single achievement October 7 has brought?” Al-Hayya replied that it was too early to judge…Addressing al-Hayya, who is now abroad and four of whose sons were killed by Israel, Jad asked with biting sarcasm: “Do you still insist that it is too early, and unfair, as you put it, to judge the Flood and the suffering it has inflicted on us so far?”’
A Philosopher of War Changes His Mind (Jordi Graupera//New Yorker 10/22/26)
“Michael Walzer wrote “Just and Unjust Wars” half a century ago. The war in Gaza made him rethink one of its fundamental principles…He mentioned an old friend who had written to him, early in 2024, to tell him that he was pulling his punches, that he was not writing about Israel’s war in Gaza the way he had written about Vietnam. Was the friend right? “Well, look,” Walzer replied. “I wrote about Vietnam years after the war was over.” He had condemned the siege of Gaza from the first days of the war, but the bombing, for him, was different. Israeli friends had kept assuring him that the I.D.F. was choosing its targets carefully, he said. “Maybe I was late in concluding that that wasn’t entirely true—that there was a policy for parts of Gaza to be made uninhabitable,” he said. A moment later, he added, “I was certainly slow to see that.”’
Behind the Settler Attack on Palestinians and a Washington Post Journalist (Isaac Chotiner interviews Jasper Nathaniel//New Yorker 10/19/26)
“The reason I keep bringing up the Palestinians throwing rocks to protect Heidi is because, I mean, I can’t emphasize enough how much these young men are . . . On Friday, they put their lives on the line. There were soldiers there, and soldiers will shoot when somebody is throwing rocks. These young men put their lives on the line to protect a sixty-three-year-old Jewish American journalist. And, I mean, these guys are heroes. If they were not doing that, so many villages would’ve been overtaken. They are literally the only defense. [On Saturday] I was in a village called Jalud, and the exact same thing happened. We got attacked by settlers, and it was these young men, whom we call the shabab, who fought them back with rocks. And the reason I just want to put a fine point on this is because, for me, just in terms of where things are going with Israel-Palestine politically, I think that a sort of discursive shift in how we talk about Palestinians’ right to defend themselves needs to happen.”
‘What He Did Was Outrageous’: Ron Lauder, Once Netanyahu’s Closest Confidant, Speaks Out (Haaretz 10/22/26)
“As far back as 30 years ago, billionaire Ron Lauder saw the prime minister putting his own political future ahead of Israel’s. Now, he is determined to sound the alarm and wake up the Israeli public before it’s too late.”