News Roundup for October 20, 2022

October 20, 2022
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J Street News Roundup

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.

Top News and Analysis

Israel: Forces Kill Palestinian Who Shot Dead Female Soldier, AP
A Palestinian gunman who killed an Israeli soldier earlier this month was shot dead Wednesday after opening fire at a security guard at a West Bank settlement near Jerusalem, Israel’s prime minister said. Yair Lapid said Uday Tamimi, from the Shuafat refugee camp near Jerusalem who was the subject of a more than weeklong manhunt, was killed by Israeli security forces.

Israeli Soldier Arrested for Joining Settler Attack on IDF Unit in West Bank, Haaretz
An Israeli soldier from a West Bank settlement near Nablus was arrested on Thursday on suspicion of participating in a widely-condemned settler attack on an IDF unit earlier in the day. The suspect has been handed over to the Shin Bet unit dealing with Jewish extremism.

Jewish Settlers Pepper Spray Israeli Soldiers in West Bank, The Washington Post
Jewish settlers stormed through a Palestinian town in the occupied West Bank, the Israeli military said Thursday, throwing stones at Palestinian cars and using pepper spray on troops who were trying to disperse the settlers. The settler rampage late Wednesday comes days after a similar incident in the same area and as Israeli-Palestinian tensions are surging over Israeli raids in the West Bank and an uptick in shooting attacks by Palestinians.

News

Israeli Military Hosts Conference in a Palestinian Village – Forcing Its Residents to Leave, Haaretz
The Israeli military held a conference on Thursday in a Palestinian village in the southern West Bank on Thursday, counting several settler leaders in attendance and demanding the town’s residents’ leave the area.

U.S. Privately Apologized to Israel Over Human Trafficking Report, Axios
The State Department privately apologized to Israel over the mention of a Palestinian trans woman who committed suicide in the preamble of a new report about human trafficking, according to Israeli officials and Israeli Foreign Ministry documents.

UN Envoy in West Bank Calls for Updated List of Companies Doing Business With Settlements, Haaretz
The UN’s “Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian Territories” is calling upon the organization to publish “without delay” an updated list of companies doing business with Israeli settlements.

Palestinians Strike After Israel Kills Suspected Attacker, Al-Monitor
Shops, offices and schools were closed across the occupied West Bank on Thursday as Palestinians went on strike to protest Israel’s killing of a man suspected of a deadly attack against Israeli forces.

Opinion and Analysis

The Threshold of Political Pain: How a Tiny Reform Radicalized Israeli Politics, The Times of Israel
Haviv Rettig Gur argues that a seemingly minor reform passed by the Knesset in 2014 that increased the vote threshold for entering the Knesset from 2% to 3.25% has empowered extreme parties and is playing a central role in producing Israel’s belligerent and deadlocked reality.

What To Watch With Less Than 2 Weeks Until Israel’s Elections, Axios
Barak Ravid reports on what observers should pay attention to, as the Israeli elections rapidly approach.

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