Top news stories from Israel/Palestine: September 17, 2018

What We’re Reading

FMEP Resources

Occupied Thoughts: Preventing Palestine w/ Peter Beinart & Seth Anziska,

In this edition of FMEP’s podcast series “Occupied Thoughts” Peter Beinart interviews author and historian Seth Anziska, whose recently published book “Preventing Palestine: A Political History from Camp David to Oslo” takes a fresh look at why the plan for a viable Palestinian state did not come to be – and how the events surround the Oslo accords continues to define the current prospects for the fulfillment of Palestinian national ambitions.

Occupation/Human rights

Sabra and Shatila: New Revelations,

A startling verbatim exchange between Israeli Defense Minister Ariel Sharon and US diplomat Morris Draper clearly demonstrates how the slaughter of civilians in the Palestinian refugee camps of south Beirut was prolonged by Draper’s acquiescence in the face of Sharon’s deceptive claim of “terrorists” remaining behind.

Thousands visit West Bank holy sites in predawn pilgrimages,

Roughly 15,000 Jews visited the Tomb of the Patriarchs holy site in the West Bank city of Hebron on Sunday night and early Monday morning ahead of the upcoming Yom Kippur holiday.

Palestinians in Israel: How Oslo isolated us from the liberation struggle,

“The Oslo Accords enacted a master plan of divide and conquer against Palestinians – a destruction of collectiveness and a confusion of priorities. Those who write off as narrow-minded calls to end Oslo are wrong; it is the most broad-minded thing we can demand today.”

187% rise in settler housing starts in second quarter of 2018,

The number of settler housing starts rose by 187% in the second quarter of 2018, in what could be the first sign of an upward turn of actual West Bank settler construction in the era of the Trump Administration.

PHOTOS: Activists spend night in Palestinian village Israel plans to demolish,

The Israeli military is expected to demolish and forcibly displace the entire village of Khan al-Ahmar any day now. Hundreds of activists hope to stave off the bulldozers, or at least stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the village’s residents when they arrive.

BDS and Settlement boycotts

Professor with US and French citizenship arrested in West Bank protest, ordered deported by Israel,

A professor with dual American and French citizenship was arrested during a protest at a West Bank Bedouin village slated for demolition will be deported from Israel, his attorney said.

According to 'Israel Hayom,' BDS has nothing to do with the occupation,

Israel’s most-read newspaper deletes crucial explanations from an Associated Press article, leaving its readers with zero understanding of why Palestinians might want the world to boycott Israel.

US-Israeli/Palestinian relations

U.S. Expels Palestinian Ambassador, Closes Family’s Bank Accounts,

Palestinian Ambassador to the United States Husam Zomlot said that he had been expelled from the country and that the bank accounts of his family had been frozen, days after the State Department ordered the closure of the PLO embassy in Washington.

US has no plan for Middle East peace, says senior Palestinian,

The US will not present its long-awaited plan for Israeli-Palestinian peace any time soon and is instead trying to unilaterally change the terms of reference for any future proposal, a senior Palestinian official said on Saturday.

US cuts aid to 'Palestine-Israel' conflict resolution programmes,

Money earmarked for Palestinians in West Bank and Gaza will instead be redirected to programmes within Israel’s borders.

Israeli politics

The potential of the Joint List in Brussels,

“The EU has become effectively paralyzed in its ability to react to and meaningfully impact the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. A recent visit by Arab members of Knesset represents an opportunity for both the EU and civil society in Israel to engage in new ways.”