Top News & Analysis on Israel/Palestine: April 12-19, 2024

Resource

  1. New from FMEP

  2. Gaza

  3. Region//Global

  4. River to the Sea

  5. U.S. Scene

  6. Media//Lawfare//Quashing Criticism of Israel

  7. Perspectives//Long Reads 

NEW FROM FMEP

Dead, Disabled, Displaced, Detained, Orphaned: The Toll of Israel’s War on Palestinian Children (Upcoming webinar on 4/25)

Israel’s war in Gaza and the increased violence in the West Bank – now known as the “Quiet War” – have affected Palestinian children in particularly horrific ways. Human rights researchers have documented these specific harms: Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 13,800 children, turned 19,000 into orphans, and made more than 1000 into amputees. More than 1 million children have lost their homes. Dozens of children have already starved to death, and up to 60% of the children in northern Gaza are experiencing acute malnourishment in a famine that is spreading at the fastest rate of starvation on record anywhere in the world, and which may constitute the war crime of deliberate starvation. As UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini put it, “This war is a war on children. It is a war on their childhood and their future.” And in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, Palestinian children continue to face arrest and detention, home demolitions and expulsions. Over the past six months, increased violence at the hands of the IDF and the IDF-backed settlers over the past six months has killed 117 Palestinian children. In this webinar, public health expert Dr. Yara Asi will speak with experts from two premiere Palestinian human rights organizations: Hamdi Shaqqura from the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR), a Gaza-based organization which continues to operate and collect data in Gaza even under the most difficult circumstances; and Miranda Cleland from Defense for Children International-Palestine, which focuses on the rights of Palestinian children under Israeli occupation.

FMEP Legislative Round-Up: April 19, 2024 (Lara Friedman)

1. Bills, Resolutions
2. Emergency $$/Weapons for Israel Back on the Agenda (& more!)
3. Letters
4. Hearings & Markups
5. Selected Media & Press releases/Statements

Settlement & Annexation Report: April 19, 2024 (Kristin McCarthy)

Updates on Gaza & Looking to the Future: Mass Depopulation & Continued Violence (New podcast episode)

In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, political analyst Khalil Sayegh joins FMEP Fellow Peter Beinart to look at the current situation on the ground in Gaza, where Sayegh’s family is located, including a discussion of the military and political dynamics of both Israel and Hamas. Looking towards the future, Sayegh discusses the ways the in which Israel has made Gaza unlivable and has no plan to make it livable again, thus creating the conditions for mass depopulation of Gaza and laying the groundwork for continued armed Palestinian resistance.

RESIGNED: The Former Biden Admin Officials Who Left Their Jobs Over Gaza (FMEP webinar recorded 4/12/24)

Featuring Tariq Habash, former official at the U.S. Department of Education, Josh Paul, former official at the U.S. Department of State, Annelle Sheline, & former official at the U.S. Department of State in conversation with FMEP Fellow Rania Batrice. Paul, Habash, and Sheline come together for their first joint public appearance and conversation over their individual decisions to resign from their jobs in the Biden Administration over the President’s policy on Israel, Palestine, and the ongoing war in Gaza. We discuss the Biden Administration’s policy and decision-making, and the possibilities for changing course, as well as the personal stakes, choices, and costs of public protest against the U.S.’s close embrace of Israel and its brutal war on Gaza.

GAZA

1.7 million Palestinians forcibly displaced in Gaza: UNHCR (PressTV)

“The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCR) has announced about 1.7 million Palestinians have been forcibly displaced inside Gaza due to Israel’s genocidal war against the people of Palestine. UNHCR spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said during a press conference at the United Nations office in Geneva on Tuesday that “resolving the catastrophic situation experienced by civilians in Gaza must remain a priority.”…She said that “Israel continues to impose unlawful restrictions on the entry and distribution of humanitarian assistance, and to carry out widespread destruction of civilian infrastructure.” Shamdasani added, “There are about 1.7 million forcibly displaced people in Gaza. These people live in terrifying conditions and under constant threat.”’ See also Thousands of Palestinians attempt to return home to northern Gaza, but face Israeli fire (CNN); Six months into the war on Gaza, over 10,000 women have been killed, among them an estimated 6,000 mothers, leaving 19,000 children orphaned (UN Women)

‘It’s death there’: babies and children hit hardest as famine tightens hold on Gaza (The Guardian)

“Even if the war in Gaza ended tomorrow, for some of the Palestinian territory’s children, it would not help. Hunger and malnutrition have already claimed an estimated 27 young lives, and for many more, it may be too late to reverse the excruciating toll that starvation takes on small, growing bodies…UN-backed food insecurity experts assessed in mid-March that famine n Gaza could set in between later that month and mid-May. Last week, Samantha Power, the head of the US humanitarian and development agency, USAid, became the first American official to confirm publicly that in some areas, famine had already taken hold…Malnutrition is spreading at record pace among children, according to the World Food Programme. More than 90% of young children and pregnant and breastfeeding women are subsisting on two or fewer food groups – mainly bread – with no access to fruit, vegetables, milk or proteins. Almost half of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million is under 18, and the effects of starvation may follow those who survive for the rest of their lives: their brains and bodies, without the nutrients needed for growth, cannot properly develop, leading to health problems such as poor eyesight and learning difficulties later in life.” See also U.N. official says Israel systematically impeding Gaza aid distribution (CBS)

Israel still plans to launch Rafah assault, Netanyahu tells western diplomats (Guardian)

“Benjamin Netanyahu has told western diplomats that he will go ahead with a ground offensive on Rafah in southern Gaza, and has also suggested that Israel’s anticipated reprisal for Iran’s missile and drone salvo will be aimed at Iranian interests rather than Tehran’s proxies. The Israeli leader has sought to assure anxious allies that Israel’s response to Iran will be measured, while also claiming he will flood Gaza with aid and ensure that civilians and aid agencies are given ample opportunity to flee Rafah, the last relative refuge for at least 1.4 million displaced Palestinians. The UK foreign secretary, David Cameron, accepted on Wednesday before meeting Netanyahu that some kind of Israeli action against Iran was now inevitable. Western officials said the emphasis on an attack on Rafah – Hamas’s last military redoubt in Gaza – reflected the renewed confidence with which Netanyahu was viewing the politics of the Middle East, after western allies rallied round Israel after the Iranian attack. Some of the pressure to ostracise Israel has eased.” See also U.S. and Israel hold high-level talks on Rafah amid Iran tensions (Axios); US remains unconvinced by Israel’s plans for Rafah after second meeting (Times of Israel)

Israeli army broadcasts intimidating sounds to lure, kill, and forcibly displace civilians in the Nuseirat camp (Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor)

“As part of its ongoing genocide, which started on 7 October 2023, the Israeli army is using new disturbing techniques to intimidate, lure, and target Palestinian civilians in the central Gaza Strip’s Nuseirat refugee camp. Testimonies from camp residents, which were provided to the Euro-Med Monitor team, confirm that the sound of women screaming and babies crying was heard late at night on both Sunday and Monday. When some of the residents went out to investigate and tried to help, they were shot at by Israeli quadcopter drones. The sounds they had heard were in fact recordings playedby the Israeli drones, with the intent of forcing the camp’s residents out into the streets, where they could be easily targeted by snipers and other weaponry.”

Israeli Troops Separated a Gazan Grandma From Her Family. Her Death Will Haunt Her Descendants (Amira Hass//Haaretz)

“When they despaired of finding her outside, family members returned to the burnt house, searching more thoroughly. Only a metal frame remained from her bed, and there, among the ashes and soot left by the mattress and clothes and chest of drawers, they found bones. Her bones, apparently. Before they were found, the IDF spokesman told me that the army wasn’t familiar with the case. An army that knows about every money changer in Gaza so it can kill him with a drone missile cannot locate the soldiers who entered a house with a known address on a specific date. Did the soldiers shoot the grandmother who wasn’t theirs? Did she die of hunger or thirst, bedridden, completely alone after years in which she had been surrounded by dozens of grand- and great-grandchildren? What set the house on fire? Did she suffocate in the smoke and die before the flames reached her, or was she burned to death? These are questions that will forever torment her extended family, in Gaza and overseas, passing from generation to generation.”

How Gaza’s Largest Mental-Health Organization Works Through War (New Yorker)

“Dr. Yasser Abu-Jamei on providing counselling services to Palestinian children: “When relatives are killed, we try somehow to calm the child and then ask questions: What are you going to do tomorrow? What are you going to do the day after tomorrow?”’ See also A trauma surgeon on why Gaza is the worst of war zones (Economist); Satellite images reveal the destruction of hospitals in Gaza (Al Jazeera)

Palestinian paramedics said Israel gave them safe passage to save a 6-year-old girl in Gaza. They were all killed. (WaPo)

“A Washington Post investigation found that Israeli armored vehicles were present in the area in the afternoon, and that gunfire was audible as Hind and her cousin Layan begged for help, as well as extensive damage caused to the ambulance, are consistent with Israeli weapons. The analysis is based on satellite imagery, contemporaneous dispatcher recordings, photos and videos of the aftermath, interviews with 13 dispatchers, family members and rescue workers, and more than a dozen military, satellite, munitions and audio experts who reviewed the evidence, as well as the IDF’s own statements…The Post’s review also found that the ambulance was discovered along a route provided by COGAT, an arm of the Israeli Defense Ministry that generally coordinates safe passage for medical vehicles with the IDF…The IDF denied that any coordination had taken place, repeating its assertion that its forces were not in the area. It did not comment on two detailed timelines of the incident, or on the expert findings, provided by The Washington Post.” See also Gaza’s IVF embryos destroyed by Israeli strike (Reuters)

REGION/GLOBAL

Israel conducted strike on Iran, senior U.S. official says (Axios)

“Fars news agency, which is affiliated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), reported explosions were heard in the city of Isfahan in central Iran near an Iranian air force base. Iranian state TV reported several drones were shot down by air defenses in Isfahan. Iran issued a notification early Friday morning local time closing the air space over western parts of the country. Iranian state news agency IRNA reports Iranian air defense systems were activated tonight in several places in the country. The International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN’s nuclear watchdog, said early Friday morning that there was “no damage to Iran’s nuclear sites.”’ See also Iran says no retaliation planned, as both sides seek distance from Isfahan attack (Times of Israel)

Isfahan, apparent site of Israeli strike, is home to Iranian nuclear facilities (WaPo)

“The Israeli military carried out strikes on Iran early Friday, an Israeli official said, in retaliation for an Iranian barrage of missiles and drones launched last Saturday — but the scope appeared limited.
Iranian state media said that Iran’s air defense systems intercepted “three small drones” in Isfahan province. The provincial capital in central Iran is famed for its ornate Islamic architecture, but the province is also home to sensitive facilities, including a military base and key nuclear labs.Here’s what to know about Isfahan and why it was a target.” See also Israel’s limited strike on Iran appears designed to avoid escalation (WaPo); Israel, Iran at a draw after Isfahan attack, ready to return to covert war (Al Monitor); How Iran-Israel tensions have escalated since the war on Gaza: A timeline (Al Jazeera); Tehran plays down reported Israeli attacks, signals no retaliation (Reuters); Israel’s Strike Was Smaller Than Expected, and So Was Iran’s Reaction (NYT); Muted Initial Response to Strike Suggests Iran and Israel Want to Avoid Escalation (NYT);

U.S. Distances Itself From Israel’s Strike in Iran, Focusing on Deescalation Efforts (Haaretz)

“Hours after Israel’s apparent retaliatory strikes against Iran, the United States is officially taking a hands-off approach – trying to distance itself from any reported military action while maintaining support for Israel’s right to self-defense. In the first public remarks from a senior U.S. official since the strikes, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken repeatedly declined the opportunity to discuss the strikes except to link the Biden administration with deescalation efforts instead of military action. “The U.S. hasn’t been involved in any offensive operations. What we’re focused on is our work to de-escalate tensions. You saw Israel on the receiving end of an unprecedented attack, and our focus is making sure Israel can defend itself while avoiding conflict,” he said at a press conference in Italy following a meeting with G7 foreign ministers.” See also Biden admin unveils new sanctions on Iran for “unprecedented” Israel attack (Axios)

US vetoes Palestinian membership at United Nations (Al Monitor)

“The United States used its veto on Thursday to block a Palestinian bid for full membership at the United Nations, a move that underscored American isolation over its support for Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip. By a vote of 12 in favor, the United States against and 2 abstentions (the United Kingdom and Switzerland), the Algeria-sponsored draft resolution failed to pass the council. Thursday’s vote marks the fourth time since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks that the United States has exercised its veto authority on the Security Council to shield Israel from resolutions. It abstained from, rather than vetoed, a cease-fire resolution in March, as domestic and international pressure mounted over the administration’s Gaza policy. To be admitted as a new member, Palestine needs the approval of at least nine Security Council members and no vetoes, followed by a two-thirds majority in the General Assembly. After its first failed membership bid in 2011, the UN General Assembly voted to upgrade Palestine’s status to “non-member observer state.” Like the Vatican, Palestine can’t vote in the General Assembly but can participate in UN bodies, such as the International Criminal Court. The United States had hoped to persuade other member states to vote “no” on the draft resolution so that it could avoid using its veto. The Biden administration maintains that before UN membership, there must first be a negotiated agreement between the Palestinians and Israel, which in 1967 captured the territories the Palestinians seek as part of their independent homeland.” See also ‘Blatant aggression’: Reactions to US veto of Palestine’s UN membership bid (Al Jazeera)

Palestinian Perspectives on Escalating Iran-Israel Relations (Fadi Quran,Fathi Nimer,Tariq Kenney-Shawa,Yara Hawari//Al Shabaka)

“While simultaneously carrying out its ongoing genocide in Gaza, the Israeli regime attacked the Iranian embassy in Damascus, Syria, on April 1, 2024, killing seven Iranian officials. According to Iran, Israeli forces were intending to target a meeting between Iranian officials and Palestinian militants discussing resistance strategies in Gaza. Following the bombing, Iran promised to retaliate—and it did so 12 days later on April 13, 2024, with the launch of over 300 drones and missiles toward Israel. Between Israel’s US-funded Iron Dome air defense system and direct military support from the US, the UK, France, and Jordan, the vast majority of Iran’s barrage was intercepted before impact. Shortly after, the Iranian mission to the UN stated that the matter “can be deemed concluded.” While it remains unclear how and when Israel will respond to Iran’s operation, regional dynamics have undoubtedly already shifted. In this roundtable, Al-Shabaka analysts Fadi Quran, Fathi Nimer, Tariq Kenney-Shawa, and Yara Hawari offer insights on the regional impact of Iran’s recent maneuver and situate the ongoing genocide in Gaza within this broader context.”

Why did Iran attack Israel? What to know about the strikes, U.S. response. (WaPo 4/15/24)

“More than 300 drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles were launched by Iran in the first full-scale military attack on Israel by Tehran. Around 99 percent of the projectiles were intercepted, according to Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, the Israel Defense Forces spokesman. Some of the projectiles fell inside Israeli territory, and one damaged a military base in the country’s south, Hagari said. A young girl who was seriously injured in the attack underwent surgery and was moved to the pediatric intensive care unit, according to Israel’s Soroka Hospital. Hagari said “a coalition” of countries helped Israel with intercepting the projectiles. The U.S. military helped Israel take down “nearly all” of the drones and missiles, Biden said. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Britain’s Royal Air Force shot down “a number of Iranian attack drones,” while Jordan’s cabinet said it “dealt with” objects that flew through its airspace overnight. France also contributed technological support, Hagari said. Tehran’s attack on Saturday was “four-pronged,” according to a report by the state-run Tasnim News Agency, originating from sites in Iran, Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen. The commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami, called Tehran’s attack “more successful than we had expected” and warned that any retaliation by Israel would draw a more forceful response. At a United Nations Security Council meeting Sunday, Iran and Israel traded blame over the recent escalation. Iran’s ambassador said the Iranian attack was a “necessary and proportionate” response to an earlier Israeli strike on an Iranian consular building in Syria, while his Israeli counterpart said Iran’s actions “crossed every red line.” See also Iran launches massive drone and missile attack against Israel (WaPo, 4/14/24); U.S. Intercepts Dozens of Iranian Drones and Missiles Aimed at Israel (NYT); Iran’s Attacks Bring Long Shadow War With Israel Into the Open (NYT); Iran Launches Aerial Attack on Israel (NYT)

As Iran and Israel collide, will Palestinians pay the price? (Ghousoon Bisharat//+972)

“‘There is a real possibility that in return for Israel de-escalating with Iran, the United States may give Israel a freer hand in Gaza, specifically with regard to Rafah,” [Middle East Institute’s Khaled] Elgindy warned, referring to a planned ground invasion of the Strip’s southernmost city. In the eyes of the Biden administration, Elgindy continued, “so long as the costs are borne primarily by Palestinians, then it’s acceptable. The moment that the costs escalate beyond Gaza and the Palestinians … then it becomes more dangerous.” But this line of thinking, he added, cannot evade the fact that the prospect of an all-out regional war “grows more likely with every day that passes without a ceasefire [in Gaza].”’

Qatar ‘reevaluating’ Hamas-Israel mediation role amid mounting criticism (Al Monitor)

“Qatar’s prime minister said on Wednesday that his country is reevaluating its mediation role between Israel and Hamas.“At this point right now, we are reevaluating our role as mediators and how the parties are engaged with this mediation,” Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said during a press conference with his Turkish counterpart in Doha. In an apparent jab at pro-Israel members of Congress and some Israeli officials, Sheikh Mohammed accused “politicians with narrow interests” of harming Qatar with their “destructive statements.” Qatar, which for more than a decade has hosted Hamas’ political office in Doha, has helped lead the negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian militant group. As the hostage talks stalemated, Republicans and increasingly some Democrats have accused Qatar of failing to leverage its relationship with the US-designated terrorist group that it’s sheltering.” See also C.I.A. Director Blames Hamas for Stalled Peace Talks (NYT);

Israel Has Used Exploding Drones in Previous Attacks on Iran (NYT)

“Iranian officials said that the Israeli strike on Friday morning was carried out by small exploding drones, a tactic that would follow a well-established pattern in Israeli attacks on Iranian military targets. As Israel has targeted Iranian defense and military officials and infrastructure, small drones — specifically ones known as quadcopters — have been a signature of those operations. Quadcopter drones, so named because they have four rotors, have a short flight range and can explode on impact. The drones might have been launched from inside Iran, whose radar systems had not detected unidentified aircraft entering Iranian airspace, Iranian officials said. If the drones were launched within the country, it demonstrates once again Israel’s ability to mount clandestine operations in Iranian territory. Israel’s military has not commented on Friday’s strike. Though it rarely claims responsibility publicly for attacks against Iranian targets, several attacks in recent years have used drones.”

Scoop: Biden told Bibi U.S. won’t support an Israeli counterattack on Iran (Axios 4/14/24)

“Biden told Netanyahu the joint defensive efforts by Israel, the U.S. and other countries in the region led to the failure of the Iranian attack, according to the White House official. “You got a win. Take the win,” Biden told Netanyahu, according to the official. The official said that when Biden told Netanyahu that the U.S. will not participate in any offensive operations against Iran and will not support such operations, Netanyahu said he understood.” See also Blinken: Escalation with Iran is not in U.S. or Israel’s interests (Axios)

Miscalculation Led to Escalation in Clash Between Israel and Iran (NYT 4/17/24)

“Israel was mere moments away from an airstrike on April 1 that killed several senior Iranian commanders at Iran’s embassy complex in Syria when it told the United States what was about to happen. Israel’s closest ally had just been caught off guard…Publicly, U.S. officials voiced support for Israel, but privately, they expressed anger that it would take such aggressive action against Iran without consulting Washington. The Israelis had badly miscalculated, thinking that Iran would not react strongly, according to multiple American officials who were involved in high-level discussions after the attack, a view shared by a senior Israeli official. On Saturday, Iran launched a retaliatory barrage of more than 300 drones and missiles at Israel, an unexpectedly large-scale response, if one that did minimal damage. The events made clear that the unwritten rules of engagement in the long-simmering conflict between Israel and Iran have changed drastically in recent months, making it harder than ever for each side to gauge the other’s intentions and reactions.”

Israel to extend water agreement with Jordan (Ynet)

“Following Jordan’s involvement in the western coalition’s efforts to intercept all missiles and drones fired from Iran toward Israel, it appears Israel has decided to reciprocate; Energy Minister Eli Cohen is widely expected to extend the Jordanian-Israeli water agreement for an additional year.” See also Israeli gas exports to Egypt grow despite tensions over Gaza war (Al Monitor)

Germany bars doctor who worked in Gaza, shuts down Palestinian conference (WaPo)

“A prominent British Palestinian doctor said he was “forcibly prevented” from entering Germany on Friday, with the Palestinian solidarity conference he was slated to speak at shut down by police who detained dozens of activists in the process. Ghassan Abu Sitta, a reconstructive plastic surgeon who spent 43 days tending to the wounded in Gaza City last year, said that he was questioned for three hours at Berlin’s airport before being told he was not allowed to enter the country. He said he had also been informed he was not allowed to record any videos that could be shown in events in Germany this month…The pro-Palestinian conference at which Abu Sitta was due to speak was broken up by police shortly after he was turned back at immigration. It accuses Germany of being complicit in “Israeli apartheid and genocide” on its website and was scheduled to include speakers such as former Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis and Irish politician Richard Boyd Barrett, both known for their Palestinian activism. Germany has thrown full support behind Israel during its war in Gaza, with the country’s security seen as paramount to the state given Germany’s Holocaust history. It is the second largest arms supplier to Israel after the United States, with Nicaragua lodging a case at the International Court of Justice earlier this week alleging that Germany is aiding genocide through its deliveries. Berlin has called the case “grossly biased.”’ See also ‘Tomorrow is a Palestinian day’ (Dr. Ghassan Abu-Sittah//Mondoweiss)

14 troops, 4 civilians wounded in Hezbollah drone attack on northern border town (Times of Israel)

“Fourteen soldiers and four civilians were wounded as an explosive drone fired from Lebanon struck a community center in the northern border town of Arab al-Aramshe on Wednesday, medics and the military said.” See also Hezbollah launches missiles and drones at northern Israel, wounding 14 Israeli soldiers (Reuters)

Israeli strikes in Lebanon kill three including Hezbollah commander, sources say (Reuters)

“Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon on Tuesday killed three people including a Hezbollah field commander, Lebanese security sources said, an uptick in violence after at least a week of relative calm in more than half a year of hostilities.” See also Lebanon says Israeli agents likely killed Hezbollah-linked currency exchanger near Beirut (AP)

In landmark ruling, Argentine court says Iran and Hezbollah were responsible for 1994 Jewish center bombing (JTA)

“An Argentine court has ruled that Iran and Hezbollah were behind the 1994 bombing of the AMIA Jewish community center in Buenos Aires, a landmark development in the reckoning over the antisemitic attack that may open the door to international legal action. In a nearly 800-page ruling, the country’s highest criminal court said on Thursday that Iran directed the 1994 bombing of AMIA, which killed 85 people, and defined the attack as “a crime against humanity” and Iran as “a terrorist state.” The bombing was, at the time, the deadliest single attack on Jews since the Holocaust. It came two years after a bombing at the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires killed 29.”

RIVER TO THE SEA

Homes burned, animals killed: Palestinians describe Israeli settler rampage (WaPo)

“Al-Mugghayir, West Bank — The attack by Israeli settlers on this Palestinian village was the worst anyone here could remember. There were pools of dried blood on the rooftop where assailants shot a man dead; a pile of lambs with their necks slit was thick with buzzing flies. At least two Palestinians were killed in the rampage across West Bank villages near Ramallah over the weekend, according to residents, monitoring groups and paramedics, fueled by calls for retribution after a 14-year-old Israeli shepherd went missing in the surrounding area and was later found dead. The Israeli military said he was the victim of a “terrorist attack.” Hundreds of settlers roamed the roads and hillsides of al-Mughayyir, eyewitnesses said, throwing stones and firing on residents. They set homes and vehicles ablaze, including a firetruck that had been called to put out the flames engulfing a family business. Palestinians threw rocks back at the attackers, they said, but were easily outmatched.” See also West Bank sees biggest settler rampage since war in Gaza began as Israeli teen’s body is found (AP); ‘The soldiers opened the way for the settlers’: Pogroms surge across West Bank (Oren Ziv//+972); Israeli settlers kill two Palestinians in West Bank, officials say (Guardian)

Courts Order Evicting 35 Palestinians From East Jerusalem Homes; Properties to Be Allocated to Israeli Right-wing Groups (Haaretz)

“Two Israeli courts ordered in the last few days the eviction of 35 Palestinians from their homes in the East Jerusalem’s flashpoint Silwan and Sheikh Jarrah neighborhoods, ruling in favor of right-wing Jewish nonprofits…Israeli law only allows Jews to reclaim property based on ownership rights dating back to before Israel’s establishment, and both eviction cases were the result of claims made by right-wing Jewish activists. It is estimated that about a third of the real estate in West Jerusalem was owned by Arab Palestinians prior to Israel’s 1948 War of Independence, but that property was transferred to the Israeli government and to private ownership in accordance with the country’s abandoned property law. Palestinian owners have no legal right to have it returned to them.”

Revealed: Israel has sped up settlement-building in East Jerusalem since Gaza war began (Guardian)

“Israel’s government has accelerated the construction of settlements across East Jerusalem, with more than 20 projects totalling thousands of housing units having been approved or advanced since the start of the war in Gaza six months ago, planning documents show. Ministries and offices within the Israeli government are behind all the largest and most contentious of the projects, sometimes in association with rightwing nationalist groups with a history of trying to evict Palestinians from their homes in parts of the city…“The fast-tracking of these plans has been unparalleled in the last six months,” said Sari Kronish, from the Israeli human rights organisation Bimkom – Planners for Planning Rights. “While many government bodies were shuttered or had limited operation following 7 October, the planning authorities continued to plough forward, advancing these plans at unprecedented speed.”’

West Bank: Israel Responsible for Rising Settler Violence (Human Rights Watch)

“The Israeli military either took part in or did not protect Palestinians from violent settler attacks in the West Bank that have displaced people from 20 communities and have entirely uprooted at least 7 communities since October 7, 2023, Human Rights Watch said today. Israeli settlers have assaulted, tortured, and committed sexual violence against Palestinians, stolen their belongings and livestock, threatened to kill them if they did not leave permanently, and destroyed their homes and schools under the cover of the ongoing hostilities in Gaza. Many Palestinians, including entire communities, have fled their homes and lands. The military has not assured displaced residents that it will protect their security or allow them to return, forcing them to live in precarious conditions elsewhere.” See also US announces further sanctions on far-right Israeli settlers (Middle East Eye); West Bank at boiling point as Palestinians take up arms against settlers (Al Monitor)

U.S., EU Sanction Prominent Far-right Israeli Activists, NGOs That Fundraised for Previously Sanctioned West Bank Settlers (Haaretz)

“ The U.S. announced Friday its third round of sanctions against extreme right-wing Israelis involved in violence against Palestinians in the West Bank, including Bentzi Gopstein, a prominent far-right Israeli activist who is considered close to National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir. The European Union also announced new sanctions on four Israeli settler activists and two extreme right-wing organizations, including the Lehava organization led by Gopstein…The EU also imposed personal sanctions on far-right activists Meir Ettinger, Elisha Yered, Neria Ben Pazi and Yinon Levy. Yered previously served as an assistant to Knesset member Limor Son Har-Melech of the Otzma Yehudit party…The U.S. Treasury Department is additionally designating the Mount Hebron Fund and Shlom Asiraich NGOs for their roles in established fundraising campaigns for two settlers – Yinon Levi and David Chai Chasdai – who have already been sanctioned by the U.S.”

The thousands of Palestinians Israel arrests, tortures, holds even in death (Al Jazeera)

“Local monitors say at least 9,500 Palestinians from the occupied West Bank are in captivity, a sharp uptick from the 5,200 who were in prison before Israel launched an assault on Gaza in response to an October 7 attack on Israeli communities and military outposts led by the Palestinian group Hamas. Since then, Palestinians have been arrested for actions as innocuous as raising a Palestinian flag or social media posts expressing empathy with victims in Gaza, where more than 35,000 people have been killed in Israel’s devastating war.” See also Gaza detainees ‘urinated on, made to act like animals’ by Israeli forces, Unrwa says (Middle East Eye); Israeli minister Ben Gvir calls for execution of Palestinian prisoners to ease overcrowding (Middle East Eye); Ben Gvir forms police team targeting left-wing activists in the West Bank – report (Times of Israel)

Prominent Palestinian academic arrested in Israel for ‘incitement’ (Middle East Eye)

“A prominent Palestinian academic already suspended from her university position over anti-Zionist comments has been arrested on “suspicion of incitement”…Adalah, an advocacy group which campaigns for the rights of Palestinians in Israel, said: “The arrest of Professor Shalhoub-Kevorkian is an egregious violation of her rights, motivated by an agenda of incitement, political persecution, and racism. “Her opinions and speech are protected under the right of freedom of expression and academic freedom. The decision of the State Attorney’s Office to pursue an investigation against her flagrantly violates her right to freedom of expression, contradicts the rule of law, and appears to be unduly influenced by the radical right-wing.”’ See also Court releases Hebrew U. professor held for incitement, call her arrest unjustified (Times of Israel); International Academics’ Statement on the Arrest of Professor Nadera Shalhoub Kevorkian

U.S. SCENE

Military Aid to Israel Cannot Be Unconditional (NYT Editorial Board)

“The U.S. commitment to Israel — including $3.8 billion a year in military aid, the largest outlay of American foreign aid to any one country in the world — is a reflection of the exceptionally close and enduring relationship between the two countries. A bond of trust, however, must prevail between donors and recipients of lethal arms from the United States, which supplies arms according to formal conditions that reflect American values and the obligations of international law. Mr. Netanyahu and the hard-liners in his government have broken that bond, and until it is restored, America cannot continue, as it has, to supply Israel with the arms it has been using in its war against Hamas…Pausing the flow of weapons to Israel would not be an easy step for Mr. Biden to take; his devotion and commitment to the Jewish state go back decades. But the war in Gaza has taken an enormous toll in human lives, with a cease-fire still out of reach and many hostages still held captive. The eroding international support for its military campaign has made Israel more insecure. Confronted with that suffering, the United States cannot remain beholden to an Israeli leader fixated on his own survival and the approval of the zealots he harbors.”

Blinken Is Sitting on Staff Recommendations to Sanction Israeli Military Units Linked to Killings or Rapes (ProPublica)

“A special State Department panel recommended months ago that Secretary of State Antony Blinken disqualify multiple Israeli military and police units from receiving U.S. aid after reviewing allegations that they committed serious human rights abuses. But Blinken has failed to act on the proposal in the face of growing international criticism of the Israeli military’s conduct in Gaza, according to current and former State Department officials. The incidents under review mostly took place in the West Bank and occurred before Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel. They include reports of extrajudicial killings by the Israeli Border Police; an incident in which a battalion gagged, handcuffed and left an elderly Palestinian American man for dead; and an allegation that interrogators tortured and raped a teenager who had been accused of throwing rocks and Molotov cocktails. Recommendations for action against Israeli units were sent to Blinken in December, according to one person familiar with the memo. “They’ve been sitting in his briefcase since then,” another official said.” See also Blinken says he’s made decision on Israeli human rights violations in West Bank (WaPo); Democrats Question U.S. Claims that Israel Isn’t Violating International Law Using American Weapons (The Intercept)

Anti-woke Republicans attacked Columbia University. It capitulated (Alisa Solomon, Marianne Hirsch, Sarah Haley and Helen Benedict//The Guardian)

“As Jewish faculty at Columbia University, we watched with alarm as our president, Minouche Shafik, appeared before the House education and workforce committee on Wednesday to answer questions about antisemitism on our campus. While we are deeply concerned about antisemitism, we are also disturbed by the ways the hearing – like those in December, and surely those to follow – used specious charges of rampant antisemitism to advance an illiberal agenda. We were shocked that President Shafik capitulated to its mendacious premises and failed to stand up for fundamental academic principles of honest intellectual inquiry and free expression. Most galling was the absence of any acknowledgment of the relentless devastation in Gaza: the urgent reason for the student protests that the committee caricatures and condemns as antisemitic…The campaign against the independence of higher education has now found incendiary fuel from a new ally: a longstanding, well-organized movement to stifle pro-Palestinian speech in American theaters, art spaces, literary venues and schools. For decades, this effort has relied on the false premise that any expression of a Palestinian narrative is an attack on Israel’s very existence, and that any support of Palestine is pro-Hamas.”

Adams, NYPD announce over 108 arrests during ‘Gaza Solidarity Encampment’ sweep (Columbia Spectator)

“Mayor Eric Adams, alongside top New York Police Department officials, announced during a press conference on Thursday afternoon that police had made more than 108 arrests during the sweep of the “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” on South Lawn. Captain Jaclyn Keane confirmed at the press conference that all 108 arrested were charged with trespassing, and two were additionally charged with obstruction of governmental administration. The arrests came shortly after University President Minouche Shafik announced the suspension of the protesting students and authorized the NYPD to enter campus and “remove these individuals” from South Lawn…In her letter to the NYPD on Thursday, Shafik wrote that she had “determined that the encampment and related disruptions pose a clear and present danger to the substantial functioning of the University.” When asked to characterize the protests, Chief John Chell said the “clear and present danger” was identified by Columbia, not by the NYPD. The NYPD reported no violence or injuries associated with the “Gaza Solidarity Encampment.” “To put this in perspective, the students that were arrested were peaceful, offered no resistance whatsoever, and were saying what they wanted to say in a peaceful manner,”Chell said.” See also Columbia University students stage Vietnam-era anti-war protests for Gaza (Middle East Eye); Palestine Legal Statement on McCarthyist Congressional Hearing With Columbia University President (Palestine Legal); Republicans Wanted a Crackdown on Israel’s Critics. Columbia Obliged. (Michelle Goldberg//NYT); Ilhan Omar’s daughter suspended from Columbia University over Gaza protests (Al Monitor)

Wave of pro-Palestinian protests closes bridges, major roads across U.S. (WaPo)

“Pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked roads, highways and bridges across the country Monday, snarling traffic and sparking arrests from coast to coast in what some activists declared to be a coordinated day of economic protest against the Israel-Gaza war. The disruption appeared to span the country for much of Monday. Protesters in San Francisco parked vehicles on the Golden Gate Bridge, stopping traffic in both directions for four hours Monday morning, while hundreds of demonstrators blocked a highway in Oakland, some by chaining themselves to drums of cement, California Highway Patrol representatives told The Washington Post. In New York, dozens of protesters stopped traffic on the Brooklyn Bridge and held demonstrations on Wall Street, according to ABC7.Pro-Palestinian protests were also reported in Philadelphia, Chicago, Miami and San Antonio. Demonstrators’ targets ranged from major highways such as Interstate 5 in Eugene, Ore., to a countryside road leading to an aircraft engine manufacturer in Middletown, Conn. Protesters also blocked roads leading to O’Hare International Airport in Chicago and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in Washington state, prompting travelers to walk their suitcases across roads on foot…Protesters have stalled traffic, closed streets, disrupted daily life and interrupted events in major U.S. cities intermittently since the beginning of the Israel-Gaza war, but few have concurrently or consecutively affected travel in as many parts of the country as on Monday. Activists on social media called the Tax Day demonstrations a coordinated day of economic protest against the Israel-Gaza war. Among the banners that protesters unfurled across the country’s highways were calls to “stop the world for Gaza” and for the United States to stop sending arms to Israel.”

Cotton Urges Citizens to Forcibly Confront Pro-Palestinian Protesters (NYT)

“Senator Tom Cotton, Republican of Arkansas, on Monday urged people whose routes were blocked by pro-Palestinian protesters to “take matters into your own hands” and confront the offenders, endorsing the use of physical force against peaceful demonstrators.”

US bill on fighting antisemitism draws rare bipartisan support in Congress (Times of Israel)

“Republicans and Democrats in US Congress are uniting to pass a bill that would create a national coordinator of the fight against antisemitism — though it faces competition from another Republican-backed bill that seeks to define antisemitism. The bipartisan Countering Antisemitism Act, introduced last week, is meant to advance US President Joe Biden’s national strategy to fight antisemitism, rolled out nearly a year ago. The plan focused on action across the executive branch, demanding reforms in federal agencies from the Education Department to the Department of Agriculture…Lara Friedman, the president of the Foundation for Middle East Peace, noted on X, formerly Twitter, that the bill’s section on higher education cites a 2019 executive order on antisemitism by President Donald Trump. “That EO, as a reminder, centers on enforcing the IHRA definition, including its examples as part of Title VI, as a means of repressing/punishing/chilling criticism and activism targeting Israel and/or Zionism on US campuses,” she said.”

USC cancels pro-Palestinian valedictorian’s speech, citing fears of threats (WaPo)

“The University of Southern California announced Monday that it will not have its valedictorian, who is Muslim and pro-Palestinian, speak at its commencement because officials worry about keeping the event safe amid fears of threats.” See also Statement by University of Southern California Student Asna Tabassum, Class of 2024 Valedictorian (CounterPunch)

MEDIA//LAWFARE//QUASHING CRITICISM OF ISRAEL

Leaked NYT Gaza Memo Tells Journalists to Avoid Words “Genocide,” “Ethnic Cleansing,” and “Occupied Territory” (The Intercept)

“The New York Times instructed journalists covering Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip to restrict the use of the terms “genocide” and “ethnic cleansing” and to “avoid” using the phrase “occupied territory” when describing Palestinian land, according to a copy of an internal memo obtained by The Intercept. The memo also instructs reporters not to use the word Palestine “except in very rare cases” and to steer clear of the term “refugee camps” to describe areas of Gaza historically settled by displaced Palestinians expelled from other parts of Palestine during previous Israeli–Arab wars. The areas are recognized by the United Nations as refugee camps and house hundreds of thousands of registered refugees. The memo — written by Times standards editor Susan Wessling, international editor Philip Pan, and their deputies — “offers guidance about some terms and other issues we have grappled with since the start of the conflict in October.”’

Google Fires 28 Employees Involved in Protest of Israeli Cloud Contract (NYT)

“Google fired 28 workers on Wednesday after dozens of employees participated in sit-ins at the company’s New York and Sunnyvale, Calif., offices to protest the company’s cloud computing contract with the Israeli government…Years before the dismissals, tensions had been simmering between the company’s management and some activist employees over Project Nimbus, a $1.2 billion Google and Amazon deal to supply the Israeli government with cloud services, such as artificial intelligence. That discord had deepened since the war in Gaza began in October. Google recently fired an employee who disrupted an Israeli technology conference in New York. And the company is even planning to make changes to a corporate forum because employees were bickering about the conflict.” See also ‘Googler Against Genocide’: Tech giant orders arrest of workers protesting contract with Israel (Middle East Eye); STATEMENT from Google workers with the No Tech for Apartheid campaign on Google’s mass, retaliatory firings of workers: (Medium)

PERSPECTIVES//LONG READS

Why Israel-Iran War Is a Lifeline for Netanyahu (Mairav Zonszein//Foreign Policy)

“Direct conflict between Israel and Iran could bolster Netanyahu at a time when he has lost the trust of Biden, his fellow cabinet ministers, and much of the Israeli public. The U.S. government is not going to seriously consider conditioning aid to Israel in the middle of this debacle. Instead of isolating and alienating Netanyahu, which seemed to be the trend, Washington must now engage and deepen cooperation with him. With more world leaders publicly backing him against Iran, Netanyahu may be able to draw out the Gaza operation—continuing to dangle the threat of a Rafah invasion and keep up the appearance of negotiations for a cease-fire, when it has become evident to many that he is not interested in one. Meanwhile, he can stall any push for elections that might replace him—all while the world’s attention turns to uncharted territory in the Middle East and the danger of a wider regional war.”

Is This Israel’s Forever War? (Keith Gessen//New Yorker)

“Foreign-policy analysts whose careers were shaped by the war on terror see troubling parallels.”

Iran is acting more rationally than Israel — for now (Lior Sternfield//+972)

“Had Iran wanted to seriously escalate its conflict with Israel, its response to the Damascus embassy bombing would have looked very different.”

Six months after October 7, a lament for the paths not chosen (Haggai Matar//+972)

“I write to Israelis who believe they have no place in their hearts for Gaza, to understand how we got to this terrible war — and how we must get out of it.”

October 7: The single deadliest day in Israeli history (Haaretz)

“How Hamas attacked Israel, the parents who rescued their children, the extent of the massacres, the conspiracy theories and the intelligence failure”