Top news stories from Israel/Palestine: January 24, 2019

What We’re Reading

Occupation/Human rights

A Guided Tour of Hebron, from Two Sides of the Occupation,

The stories of Hebron are the stories of the absent and the unseen. They are the stories of the occupation and of Palestinian life that has been caged in or displaced.

Israeli-Palestinian bidding war catapults price of E. Jerusalem home to NIS 11m,

Right-wing activists and Palestinians have engaged in a bidding war over a three-room house in East Jerusalem this week, driving the price of the unassuming structure to over NIS 11 million ($3 million) in a feud embodying the struggle for land in the capital. The auction could resume Thursday.

Opinion: ‘Does Israel Have A Right To Exist’ Is A Trick Question.,

“People who use this intellectually dishonest question as an attempt at a gotcha game are participating, wittingly or not, in an effort to silence and marginalize criticism of Israel’s abusive policies,” writes Yousef Munayyer.

Israeli court freezes Arafat property in east Jerusalem,

An Israeli court has seized a Jerusalem property partly owned by late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, holding it as collateral against a civil suit for damages against the Palestinian Authority.

US-Israeli/Palestinian relations

Congress in no hurry to act as Palestinians reject security aid,

Palestinian officials today announced that they will no longer accept US security assistance amid fears that doing so could open them up to terrorism-related lawsuits.

Israel asks U.S. to amend law that would cut aid to Palestinian security forces,

Israeli officials have [reportedly] asked the Trump administration to amend a law that would essentially end aid for the Palestinian Authority’s security forces, who have a cooperation program with Israel that many believe has provided stability to the West Bank.

What You Can’t Say About Israel,

There are signs that U.S. opinion might be shifting on Israel and its illegal occupation of the Palestinian territories.

Opinion: For Michelle Alexander’s critics, Palestinians don’t deserve civil rights,

The uproar by Jewish establishment figures over Alexander’s New York Times essay in support of Palestinian rights echoes the reactions of white Americans to the Civil Rights Movement decades ago.

Israeli politics

Ahmad Tibi has a plan to unseat Netanyahu, but it means leaving his Palestinian partners,

Ahmad Tibi’s recent announcement that he would split from the Joint List has rattled Palestinian citizens. In an interview, he speaks about the successes and failures of the list, why his party would be better off alone, and why he may join forces with Israel’s centrist leaders.

Likud MK enlists Hebron shooter Azaria to back his reelection campaign,

A Likud Knesset member seeking reelection in his party’s primaries has enlisted a controversial public figure to back his campaign: Elor Azaria, the former Israeli soldier who was convicted of manslaughter and imprisoned for killing an incapacitated Palestinian attacker.

BDS and Settlement boycotts

Irish bill to criminalize West Bank settlementFederal judge dismisses challenge to Arkansas law requiring contractors pledge not to boycott Israel activity advances,

A federal judge in Arkansas has dismissed a newspaper’s lawsuit challenging a 2017 state law requiring state contractors to pledge not to boycott Israel.