Top news stories from Israel/Palestine: September 10, 2018

What We’re Reading

US-Israeli/Palestinian relations

Trump Administration to Close Palestine Liberation Organization Office in Washington,

The Trump administration is expected to announce Monday that it will close the Palestine Liberation Organization’s office in Washington, administration officials said Sunday night.

Trump axes $25m in aid for Palestinians in East Jerusalem hospitals,

Donald Trump has ordered that $25m earmarked for the care of Palestinians in East Jerusalem hospitals be directed elsewhere as part of a review of American aid, a US state department official said on Saturday.

US Ambassador David Friedman: We don't tell Israel what to do,

“When settlements are announced or planned, U.S. consent is not an element of that process,” Friedman said in an extensive interview with Israel Hayom.

Occupation/Human rights

The Cost of Exposing Israel’s Illegal Settlements,

“When Ta’ayush activists approached [West Bank settlement] Mitzpe Yair, settlers assaulted them and grabbed their cameras.”

How Oslo Accords contributed to Israeli occupation,

“The establishment of a political Palestinian entity exempted Israeli governments from a burden of sustaining the territories, not only when it comes to: economy, education, health, employment, infrastructure and welfare, but from the enormous security burden that only those who have been to Nablus, Jenin and Hebron before Oslo, would understand.”

Bulldozing Palestinian homes: The global firms aiding Israeli demolitions,

Photographs, video and social media posts show vehicles and equipment that have been sold to the Israeli army by Caterpillar, JCB and LiuGong being used in the demolition of Palestinian homes.

Fearing collapse amid UNRWA cuts, Israeli officials urge aid for Gaza,

Israeli security officials are urging the government to find an alternative source of aid funding for the Palestinians in Gaza as US contributions to the UN’s Palestinian aid agency UNRWA have evaporated.

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