News Roundup for January 5, 2026
Is Gaza a Sleeper Issue in the Maryland Midterms?, Maryland Matters
“‘The U.S.-Israel relationship is definitely an issue that Democratic candidates use to differentiate themselves from other candidates,’ said Tali deGroot, vice president of political and digital strategy at J Street, a liberal Jewish organization seeking a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine.”
International Aid Groups Grapple With What Israel’s Ban Will Mean for Their Work in Gaza, Associated Press
“Israel’s decision to revoke the licenses of more than three dozen humanitarian organizations this week has aid groups scrambling to grapple with what this means for their operations in Gaza and their ability to help tens of thousands of struggling Palestinians […] Those banned include Doctors Without Borders, the Norwegian Refugee Council, Oxfam and Medical Aid for Palestinians.”
Iran’s Dual Challenge: Unrest at Home, Threat of Strikes From Abroad, New York Times
“Officials said that leaders were in survival mode amid anti-government protests and the prospect of again coming into the cross hairs of Israel and the United States […] The government appears at a dead end in addressing both, with no clear strategy for reversing the economic collapse fueling protests, nor any signs that Iran’s leaders are willing to make the concessions on their nuclear program sufficient to appease Israel and the United States and ward off the risk of another round of strikes.”
Syria, Israel Resume U.S.-Mediated Security Talks, Reuters
“U.S.-mediated talks between Syria and Israel have resumed after an interruption of several months, Syria’s state news agency SANA reported on Monday, with Damascus seeking withdrawal of Israeli troops from territory seized after the fall of Bashar al-Assad.”
Abbas Says Ra’am Party Will Be Open to Jewish Candidates, in Major Shift, Times of Israel
“The latest move to open the party to Jewish candidates appears to be aimed at distancing the party from hardline Muslim organizations in order to boost its legitimacy among Zionist Israeli parties ahead of elections set to be held before the end of October.”
Israeli Forces Kill Three Palestinians in Gaza, Local Authorities Say, Reuters
“Medics reported that the dead included a 15‑year‑old boy, a fisherman killed outside areas still occupied by Israel in the enclave, and a third man who was shot and killed east of the city in areas under Israeli control.”
Things Are Only Going to Get Worse for Jews from Here, The Forward
Arno Rosenfeld writes, “Ostracizing Israel’s harshest critics might have worked when anti-Zionism was a fringe belief. But the aftermath of Oct. 7 heralded a near-consensus among liberals, including many Jews, that Israel is a villain on the world stage. Attempting to simply ban people from expressing these views — or taking away their phones — is not going to help address the antisemitism that can get mixed in with animus toward Israel.”
‘It Feels Like Someone Is Always There’: In Gaza, IDF Drones Infiltrate Every Moment of Palestinians’ Lives, Haaretz
Nagham Zbeedatand and Rawan Suleiman write, “They follow people, moving back and forth through the streets and constantly humming, creating a new soundtrack that means one thing to Gazans: You are being watched. Palestinians in Gaza tell Haaretz what it’s like to live under a watchful and potentially lethal eye.”
