J Street Mourns Killing of Palestinian Activist Awdah Hathaleen, Calls for Israel to Hold Perpetrators Accountable, J Street
“We are heartbroken and horrified by the killing of nonviolent Palestinian activist Awdah Hathaleen, a dear friend and partner to many in the J Street community. Earlier today, armed settlers arrived outside the Palestinian village of Umm al-Khair, a community in the South Hebron Hills that is constantly at risk of both demolitions by Israeli authorities and attacks from settlers. The settlers began destroying the residents’ olive trees with a bulldozer, injuring one of the residents. Yinon Levi, who was filmed wielding and firing a gun during the incident, shot and killed Awdah.”
After Mamdani and Gaza, Are Democrats Turning Against Israel?, The Forward
“Phylisa Wisdom, the executive director of the progressive New York Jewish Agenda, said some liberal Jewish organizations have made it safe for non-Jewish elected officials to support Israel while being critical of its government. Wisdom’s organization, along with J Street and other progressive Jewish groups, is organizing a protest outside the Israeli Consulate in Manhattan on Monday evening to decry the humanitarian situation in Gaza and Israel’s conduct of the war.”
Sanctioned West Bank Settler Kills Palestinian Activist Featured in ‘No Other Land’ – Report, The Jerusalem Post
“Pro-Israel organization J Street also released a statement mourning Hathaleen, writing that they were both ‘heartbroken and horrified’ by his murder. J Street wrote that Hathaleen had been a partner of the organization and announced that they would be backing the proposed West Bank Violence Prevention Act in response to the growing number of settler attacks.”
Israeli Settler Kills Palestinian Activist Who Worked on Oscar-Winning Film, CNN
“Basel Adra, a Palestinian journalist and a co-director of ‘No Other Land,’ shared testimony to his ‘dear friend’ Hathalin. ‘He was standing in front of the community settler in his village when a settler fired a bullet that pierced his chest and took his life. This is how Israel erases us – one life at a time,’ Adra wrote in a post on Instagram.”
As Truce Negotiations Stall, Israel Discusses Expanding Gaza Campaign, Tightening Siege, Haaretz
“‘Netanyahu is talking about conquering the Strip and creating a humanitarian zone,’ [Likud lawmaker Lawmaker Moshe Saada] said in a radio interview. ‘The idea is to build a humanitarian city where we’ll provide energy, food and health services –that’s the right thing to do for us – and from there, to allow emigration. This is realistic and possible.’”
Trump Says There Is ‘Real Starvation’ in Gaza and U.S. Will Set Up Food Centers, NBC
“Speaking in Scotland, Trump said that the U.S. would set up food centers in Gaza as ‘we have to get the kids fed.’ He disagreed with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s assessment that there is ‘no starvation in Gaza.’”
Far-Right Minister Smotrich: Israeli Resettlement in Gaza Now a ‘Realistic Plan’, Haaretz
“‘We did not sacrifice these prices to transfer Gaza from one Arab to another,’ the minister said of the war in Gaza, speaking at a conference marking the 20th anniversary of the Israeli pullout from the territory. ‘Gaza is an inseparable part of the Land of Israel,’ he added.”
[Audio] Food That Israel Allows Into Gaza Only a Fraction of What’s Needed, Aid Groups Say, NPR
“For a third day, Israel will be trucking in and allowing air drops of some food and aid into Gaza during daily 10-hour pauses in the fighting in its war in Gaza. But is this aid enough?”
32% in U.S. Back Israel’s Military Action in Gaza, a New Low, Gallup
“Americans’ approval of Israel’s military action in Gaza has fallen 10 percentage points since the prior measurement in September, and it is now at 32%, the lowest reading since Gallup first asked the question in November 2023. Disapproval of the military action has now reached 60%.”
Starmer Is Edging Closer to Recognizing Palestinian Statehood, U.K. Officials Say, The New York Times
“Britain is now more actively weighing the recognition of a Palestinian state, two senior government officials said Monday, a striking shift prompted by public revulsion at the images of starving children in Gaza and intense pressure on Prime Minister Keir Starmer from lawmakers in his own Labour Party.”
Dutch Summon Israeli Ambassador, Impose Travel Ban on Ministers, Reuters
“Israeli government ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich will no longer be allowed to enter the Netherlands, which accuses them of repeatedly inciting violence against Palestinians and calling for an ‘ethnic cleansing’ of the Gaza strip.”
Awdah Hathaleen Was Shot Dead on His Land in the West Bank. No Israeli Settler Will Be Held Accountable, Haaretz
Becca Strober writes, “Awdah’s unjust killing is far from an isolated incident. It’s unlikely that his murderer will face any punishment. According to human rights organizations, only 3 percent of investigations of Israelis engaging in nationally motivated violence against Palestinians lead to convictions for crimes. This is the outcome of decades of state-backed settler violence and a system that grants impunity to those who target Palestinians and destroy their property, kill and steal their flocks of sheep and goats, invade their communities and yes, shoot at them.”
Is Starvation in Gaza Really Israel’s Fault? The Facts Are Clear, The Forward
Emily Tamkin writes, “Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is now claiming that it is a lie to say that Israel has withheld aid. But it’s a little late for that. ‘I have ordered a complete siege on the Gaza Strip. There will be no electricity, no food, no fuel, everything is closed,’ said then-Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Oct. 9, 2023, two days after the Hamas attack on Israel that launched the war. ‘We are fighting human animals and we are acting accordingly.’ This was not a secret. It was the proclaimed policy. And it has been followed as such, on and off, ever since.”
Perhaps Ill-Timed but Inevitable: French Recognition of a Palestinian State, The Jerusalem Post
Sebastien Levi writes, “The Israeli prime minister’s reaction should open the eyes of those who criticize France’s unilateral recognition while still professing support for the establishment of a Palestinian state. Netanyahu does not merely object to the timing – he rejects the very idea of a Palestinian state.”