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Israel To Hold Remains of Deceased Palestinian Prisoner, AP
Israel’s defense minister said Wednesday that the remains of a Palestinian prisoner who died a day earlier from lung cancer would not be released for burial. Benny Gantz’s office said the body of Nasser Abu Hamid, one of the founders of the Al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigade, would be held as a bargaining chip for the return of captive Israelis and the remains of soldiers held by the militant group Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Palestinians marched and shuttered shops in the West Bank on Tuesday to protest his death.
U.S. Defends Israel Over Deportation of Palestinian Lawyer to France, Haaretz
The United States on Monday defended Israel’s decision to deport Palestinian Jerusalemite lawyer Salah Hammouri to France, following a years-long effort by Israeli authorities to revoke his residency status. The State Department, however, acknowledged concerns over Israel’s practice of revoking Palestinians’ residency status in Jerusalem, which has attracted international attention due to the precedent it sets for other Palestinian Jerusalemites at risk of losing their residency permits. But it emphasized that Hammouri’s case is unique.
IDF Troops Come Under Fire Near Nablus; Lion’s Den Claims Responsibility, The Times of Israel
Israeli troops came under fire in two separate instances near the northern West Bank city of Nablus on Tuesday night, the military said. According to the Israel Defense Forces, Palestinian gunmen first fired at a military post near Nablus, without causing any injuries. The IDF said that during scans in the area following the attack, troops came under fire again.
Israel Donates Generators to Power Ukraine, Haaretz
Israel provided Ukraine with 17 “powerful generators for a total of more than one million dollars” this week to help power hospitals in the Kherson region as the country grapples with ongoing power shortages caused by Russian bombardment, Israel’s envoy to Kyiv said.
Over 60% of Israelis Want Controversial Topics To Be Discussed in School, The Jerusalem Post
Over 60% of Israelis want controversial topics to be discussed in the classroom and believe that such discussion is important and necessary, according to a new poll published by the Israel Democracy Institute (IDI) on Tuesday.
Conservative Jews Made a Terrible Bargain With Trump and the Right Over Israel, The Nation
Eric Alterman argues, “American Jewish leaders have spent so long genuflecting before the Christian right that even the most blatant anti-Semitism finds them unable to stand up or speak out.”
Biden’s Strategy for a Far-Right Israel: Lay It All on Bibi, Politico
Nahal Toosi reports, “President Joe Biden and his aides have a plan for how to deal with the far-right, anti-Palestinian tilt of the incoming Israeli government: make it all about Benjamin Netanyahu. The Biden administration will hold the presumptive Israeli prime minister personally responsible for the actions of his more extreme cabinet members, especially if they lead to policies that endanger a future Palestinian state, two U.S. officials familiar with the issue told POLITICO.”