Have You Ever Seen What’s Actually Happening on the West Bank – In Your Name?, Word on the Street
J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami writes, “When Israel is described as a colonial or oppressive power, many of us recoil – believing that language fails to reflect Jewish history or the reality of Israel’s founding. I know just how many American Jews resist the word ‘occupation,’ having been told that settlements are integral to Israel’s security. But most American Jews have never actually seen what we spend so much time arguing about.”
[Gift Link] Land Grab: Israel’s Escalating Campaign for Control of the West Bank, New York Times
“We spent more than two months in a dozen villages in the West Bank, meeting with Palestinian families, local officials, Bedouin farmers and young human rights activists, often visiting from abroad. We watched as groups of young Israeli settlers showed up in Palestinian villages to harass or intimidate them… The Israeli onslaught has all but vanquished a free Palestinian existence in the West Bank. While the Palestinian Authority governs part of the West Bank, the Israeli military remains the occupying power of the whole territory, and military law supersedes the authority’s rule.”
Israeli Troops Kill Six Palestinians Sheltering in Gaza School, Say Hospital Chiefs, The Guardian
“The Israeli military killed six Palestinians, including a baby, who were in a school that sheltered displaced people in Gaza City on Friday, hospital officials have said. The attack brings the number of Palestinians killed by Israel to 401 since the October ceasefire took effect.”
[Watch] How 140 Outposts Seized 1 Million Dunams: The Untold Story of the “Landlords” of the West Bank, UneXeptable on Youtube
“The film shows in detail how taxpayer money is being used to support illegal outposts, even under Israeli law, while creating facts on the ground that amount to de facto annexation of the West Bank. This is not marginal policy. It is a central government priority.”
Israel’s Cabinet Approves 19 New Jewish Settlements in the Occupied West Bank, Associated Press
“That brings the total number of new settlements over the past few years to 69, a new record, according to Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who has pushed a settlement expansion agenda in the West Bank. The latest ones include two that were previously evacuated during a 2005 disengagement plan.”
Israel Tells U.S. Iran Missile Drill Could Be Cover for an Attack, Axios
“Israeli officials warned the Trump administration over the weekend that an Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps missile exercise could be preparations for a strike on Israel, according to three Israeli and U.S. sources with knowledge of the issue… The sources said the biggest risk is a war between Israel and Iran will break as a result of a miscalculation with each side thinking the other plans to attack and try to preempt it.”
Satellite Images Show Israel Continues Gaza Demolition Efforts Despite Cease-fire, Haaretz
“According to the images, in recent months, hundreds of buildings have been destroyed in Shujaiya, in the eastern part of Gaza City alone. According to a U.K. based Forensic Architecture group, Israel maintains 48 positions along the Yellow Line in the Strip, 13 of which were built since the cease-fire.”
Saudi and Emirati Power Struggles in Yemen and Sudan Show Dangers of Relying on ‘Friendly’ Forces in Gaza, Haaretz
Zvi Bar’el writes, “U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposal to assemble an international stabilization force to provide military support for a Palestinian police presence in Gaza is currently stalled. The plan is awaiting the creation of the Peace Board to oversee the Strip, as well as formulating the force’s mandate. Except for Turkey, foreign governments have shown little enthusiasm for deploying troops to protect the ‘new Gaza.'”
