US-Israeli/Palestinian relations
Trump's Green Light for Israeli Annexation and Transfer in Jerusalem, Ha'aretz
“The lasting danger Donald Trump’s proclamation poses for the city,” writes Betty Herschman, “is that he has emboldened Israeli policymakers, already bent on making their own one-sided moves, to lethally prejudice any future negotiations.”
Encouraging the Knesset’s Right Wing, Carnegie Endowment
“Trump may have earned himself goodwill in Israel, but at the cost of inflating annexationist sentiment and stirring trouble at Jerusalem’s Holy Esplanade,” writes Ofer Zalzberg.
How Washington Lost Its Status as an Arab-Israeli Mediator, The National Interest
“The Trump administration has abdicated Washington’s role as a responsible custodian for Arab-Israeli affairs,” writes Evan Gottesman.
David Friedman, US ambassador to Israel, lights menorah at Western Wall, JTA
David Friedman, the U.S. ambassador to Israel, lit the menorah at the Western Wall in Jerusalem for the second night of Hanukkah.
Snubbed by Abbas, US vice president to skip Palestinians on upcoming trip, Times of Israel
US Vice President Mike Pence will skip the Palestinian territories during his upcoming trip to the region, after PA officials said they wouldn’t meet him due to the US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, Israeli officials and Pence’s spokesperson confirmed.
Did Trump’s Jerusalem decision revive support for Palestine?, Al-Monitor
“Without knowing or planning it, the decision by US President Donald Trump to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel has resulted in renewed interest in Palestine and brought back to the top of the agenda the question of Jerusalem,” writes Daoud Kuttab.
BDS and Differentiation
Anti-Semitism Rare But Anti-Israel Talk Common On Elite Campuses, Study Finds, The Forward
A new survey of Jewish students at some of America’s most elite universities has found that they rarely experience anti-Semitism but that most have been exposed to anti-Israel hostility.
Netanyahu Agrees to Exclude Settlements From Economic Deal With European Union, Ha'aretz
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has given approval in principle to a cooperation agreement with the European Union that contains a provision excluding the settlements.
Israel, Palestine & the region
Responding to Trump, Turkey says it will open an embassy in East Jerusalem — in support of Palestinians, LA Times
Escalating the chorus of global condemnation of President Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, the Turkish government announced Friday it would open an embassy in East Jerusalem — in support of Palestinians.
Occupation/Human rights
Following pressure, Israeli university cuts short exhibit on home demolitions, +972 Magazine
Ben Gurion University cuts short an art exhibition on home demolitions against the Negev Bedouin following pressure by the Student Association.
Israeli troops wound more than 40 Palestinians in protests over U.S. Jerusalem move, Reuters
Israeli troops shot and wounded more than 40 Palestinians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank on Friday, medical officials said, as protests over U.S. President Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital entered a second week.
High Court: Israel can’t keep holding terrorists’ bodies without a law, Times of Israel
The High Court on Thursday gave the government an ultimatum: pass a law regulating the holding of Palestinian terrorists’ bodies as bargaining chips or hand them over to their families.