US-Palestinian/Israeli relations
Opinion: Donald Trump policies are hurting Palestinians and Middle East peace prospects, USA Today
“Palestinian leaders didn’t meet with Jared Kushner because of Donald Trump’s heartless policies. The U.S. can’t broker peace unless he repairs the damage,” writes Dianne Feinstein.
'For many young American Jews, the Trump-Bibi axis is the enemy', +972 Magazine
Bradley Burston insists that his views about Israel haven’t changed since he moved here in the 1970s. It’s Israel which has changed. ‘I would like to have two states. But hundreds of thousands of Israelis said ‘you can’t have it,’ and they run the country,’ he says in a wide-ranging interview about Israel, the Nakba, and the changing face of American Jewry.
BDS
Israel denies entry to Jewish-American activist for BDS, JTA
Ariel Gold, a 43-year-old mother of two who is active in the social justice NGO CodePink, was detained Sunday night at Ben Gurion International Airport.
Lawsuit dismissed over Kansas anti-BDS law; state to pay plaintiff’s legal fees, Times of Israel
A federal judge in Kansas dismissed a lawsuit Friday over a state law requiring contractors to swear they will not boycott Israel. The lawsuit in the US Court for the District of Kansas was dismissed after the state amended the legislation.
Occupation/Human rights
New West Bank Settlement's Sewage Overflowing Into Palestinian Fields, Ha'aretz
Raw sewage from the new West Bank settlement of Amihai, which had been set up to take in people evacuated from the nearby illegal outpost of Amona, is flowing straight into agricultural fields worked by Palestinians from the village of Turmus Ayya.
U.N. expert: Israel moving closer to formal West Bank annexation, Jerusalem Post
Israel has taken steps that could lead to the formal annexation of the West Bank, UN legal expert Michael Lynk said in advance of Monday’s United Nations Human Rights Council meeting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Israeli demolition of entire Palestinian village days away, villagers fear, +972 Magazine
Israeli security forces show up and survey homes in Khan al-Ahmar, which activists and residents fear is a sign of forced displacement of the entire village. Israel’s top court gave its approval to the demolition, an act rights groups say would constitute a war crime.
In Israeli Residency Case, Individual Responsibility vs. Collective Punishment, Lawfare
While collective harm may be justified in some circumstances, collective punishment should never be allowed: one person’s rights should not be taken hostage to influence the behavior of others.
Australia ends direct aidAustralia Ends Direct Aid to Palestinian Authority Amid Fears Money Is Going to Terrorists to PA over [prisoner] payments, Ha'aretz
Australia has ended direct aid to the Palestinian Authority because it says its donations could increase the self-governing body’s capacity to pay Palestinians convicted of politically motivated violence
Palestinian politics
Hamas-Fatah feud heats up as talk of Abbas successor intensifies, Al-Monitor
Abbas said seeking unity government with Hamas to counter US peace maneuvers, Times of Israel
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is making renewed efforts to form a national unity government with the Hamas terrorist group with the aim of calling long-overdue Palestinian national elections, the Arabic-language Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper reported Monday.