Palestinians Face Stark Uncertainty as Trump Tours Middle East, Roll Call
“Virtually all of USAID’s mission projects for the West Bank and Gaza were included in a list of terminated activities that was transmitted to Congress but not published, according to Larry Garber, a policy fellow with the liberal pro-Israel advocacy group J Street.”
Israel Agrees to Resume Gaza Aid After Two Month Freeze, Foundation Says, Axios
“Resuming aid delivery was the key condition of the [Gaza Humanitarian Foundation] — established with backing from the U.S. and Israel — for it launching a new aid delivery mechanism in Gaza, which Israel says will allow aid to be delivered without being controlled by Hamas. But the announcement comes as Israel is preparing for a massive operation to flatten and occupy the entire enclave if no ceasefire deal is reached this week.”
Israeli Airstrikes in Gaza Kill 70 People, Including 22 Children, Health Officials Say, AP
“In Jabaliya, rescue workers smashed through collapsed concrete slabs using hand tools, lit by the light of cellphones, to remove children’s bodies.”
Poll: 61% of Israelis Back Saudi Normalization; 69% Support Hostage Deal, Ending War, The Times of Israel
“A substantial majority [of Israelis] — 68.9% — said they would back a Trump-led regional political initiative that included the return of all Israeli hostages, an end to the war in Gaza, normalization with Saudi Arabia, a pathway toward separation from the Palestinians, and the formation of a US-led regional security coalition against Iran.”
Trump Touts ‘Freedom Zone’ Plan for Gaza in Qatar as Ceasefire Talks Stall, NPR
“President Trump said on Thursday the Gaza Strip should be made into a ‘freedom zone,’ doubling down on his proposal to displace Palestinians from the territory just as Israel plans a major offensive and intensifies deadly airstrikes, killing more than 150 people in the past day, including dozens of children.”
Construction Sites Appear in Gaza Ahead of Israeli-US Aid Plan Rejected by UN, Images Show, BBC
“‘All aid would be channelled through a handful of militarised hubs,’ Olga Cherevko told BBC Verify. ‘That kind of arrangement would cut off vast areas of Gaza – particularly the most vulnerable, who can’t move easily, or are otherwise marginalised – from any help at all.’”
Strike on Hospital Highlights Israeli Attacks on Gaza Health System, The New York Times
“By early May, the World Health Organization had recorded 686 attacks on health facilities in Gaza since the start of the war. Those attacks have damaged at least 33 of Gaza’s 36 hospitals, according to the W.H.O., and at one point had rendered at least 19 of them inoperable; five have since returned to service.”
‘The Pain Is a Mutual Pain,’ Say Israeli Jewish and Arab Activists [Video], CNN
“Christiane Amanpour speaks with Rula Daood and Alon-Lee Green, the co-directors of Standing Together, Israel’s largest Arab-Jewish grassroots movement.”
Stop Using Antisemitism as a Weapon Against Higher Education, The Philadelphia Citizen
Longtime university president Elaine Maimon writes, “It’s ludicrous to assume that everyone speaking out against the Israeli government under Prime Minister Netanyahu is in league with Hamas terrorists. And yet the Heritage Foundation created a document designed to punish universities based on this conspiracy theory.”