J Street works to promote an open, honest and rigorous conversation about Israel. The opinions reflected in articles posted in the News Roundup do not necessarily reflect J Street’s positions, and their posting does not constitute an endorsement from J Street.
J Street Condemns Demolition of Jubbet adh-Dhib School, Urges US Response, J Street
J Street’s statement in response to the demolition of a Palestinian school in the West Bank community of Jubbet adh-Dhib.
Israel Demolishes Palestinian West Bank School, Reuters
Israeli authorities demolished a Palestinian school in the occupied West Bank on Sunday, drawing harsh condemnation from the European Union. COGAT, a branch of the Israeli military, said in a statement that the building, located about 2 km from Bethlehem, had been constructed illegally and “was found to be dangerous to the safety of anyone studying or otherwise visiting there,” and thus an Israeli court “had ordered it demolished.”
New Polls Show Gantz Still Ahead of Netanyahu and Lapid, The Jerusalem Post
Benny Gantz’s National Unity party would earn 29 seats if elections were held today, while the Likud Party would earn just 24 seats, according to new polls published by N12 and Channel 13 on Sunday evening. According to the poll published by N12, Yesh Atid would earn 18 seats, the Religious Zionist party (if it runs with Otzma Yehudit) would earn 11 seats, Shas would earn 10 seats, United Torah Judaism would earn seven seats, Yisrael Beytenu would earn six seats and Hadash-Ta’al, Meretz and Ra’am would earn five seats each.
Tens of Thousands Join Protests against Israeli Judicial Overhaul, CNBC
Tens of thousands of Israelis joined protests across the country on Saturday against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bitterly disputed plans to tighten controls on the Supreme Court. The planned overhaul, which would give the government control over naming judges to the Supreme Court and let parliament override many rulings, was paused after opponents organized some of the biggest street protests ever seen in Israel, now in their 18th consecutive week.
Israeli Shoots Arab Citizen Dead, 200 Residents of Nearby Town Protest Killing, Haaretz
A 19-year-old resident of a northern Israeli Arab village was shot dead by a 32-year-old Jewish Israeli on Saturday. Two-hundred residents of the victim’s village of Sandala are protesting the killing, which police suspect was a result of a road rage brawl.
High Court Rejects Petition Seeking Immediate Razing of Khan al-Ahmar, The Times of Israel
The High Court of Justice rejected on Sunday a petition demanding that the government immediately demolish the illegal West Bank Bedouin encampment of Khan al-Ahmar, saying the timing of such an operation is at the discretion of the government itself.
What It Means When a Palestinian Starves Himself to Death, Haaretz
Yair Assulin writes, “This is why this death, the way it occurred, everything it expresses, is maybe also a piercing glimpse into what is accumulating in the minds, spirit and souls of millions of people who live under our occupation: the despair, lack of trust, lack of hope, lack of a future, a feeling that they have nothing to lose. We’ve got all this here, and we can’t keep repressing these thoughts for much longer.”