Trump’s Meeting With Abbas: Should We Laugh Or Cry?

What We’re Reading

US-Palestinian relations

Trump’s Meeting With Abbas: Should We Laugh Or Cry?,

“If all you care about is getting a deal — if you don’t care whether it’s moral or even sustainable over the long-term — the easiest thing to do is to muscle the weaker party,” writes Peter Beinart.

Trump-Abbas meeting: A celebration of egos,

“Neither Trump, Abbas, nor Netanyahu is willing to move beyond document signing and actually work for a just and lasting peace,” writes Alaa Tartir.

How artful can Trump be when dealing with Palestine-Israel conflict?,

“Despite President Mahmoud Abbas’ much-anticipated visit to Washington, Palestinians don’t have high hopes that US President Donald Trump can achieve a breakthrough and reach a solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict,” writes Daoud Kuttab.

Trump removes tweet saying it was ‘honor’ to host Abbas,

US President Donald Trump deleted a tweet in which he said it was an “an honor” to host Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas at the White House a day after the two leaders met.

Occupation/Human rights

Israeli forces demolish East Jerusalem home, leaving 6 Palestinians homeless,

Amid a spate of demolitions in occupied East Jerusalem, Israeli authorities Thursday demolished a home in the town of Sur Bahir, leaving six Palestinians homeless.

What does the future hold for non-Jews in the Jewish state?,

A new book about Israel’s crusade against asylum seekers and undocumented workers strikes at an essential truth about the precarious status of non-Jews in a self-defined Jewish state.

Israel spars with the world at UNESCO,

“Although this latest UNESCO resolution does not call into question the Jewish people’s bonds with Jerusalem, Israel’s level of indignation remains the same because the resolution reiterates the international community’s objection to Israel’s presence in East Jerusalem as an occupying power,” write Talya Ezrahi and Yonathan Mizrachi.

IDF radio commander: Don't call it the West Bank,

Yaron Deckel, who heads the third most popular radio station in Israel, orders his staff to refrain from using the term, saying it has been ‘adopted by the Palestinians and the Left.’

Israel expels Dutch journalist after he tweets +972 articles,

The Israeli government office responsible for accrediting journalists takes issue with a foreign correspondent sharing +972 Magazine articles on social media, publishing critical stories, refuses to renew his visa.

Israeli politics

Former minister: if Trump deal fails, we need to block one-state scenario,

If the Trump administration cannot nail down the “ultimate” Israeli-Palestinian peace deal, Israel must at least avoid the path to a one-state scenario and preserve the two-states idea for the future, former top Likud minister Dan Meridor told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday.

Top prosecutor hints PM heading for indictment,

A senior prosecutor has indicated that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could be heading toward an indictment in one of the corruption cases he faces.

Gaza

Israeli military fires shells at Palestinians near Gaza perimeter fence, killing a 15-year-old and injuring another man,

The military’s response, as quoted by the media, attests to a ‘shoot first and ask questions later’ policy.