Palestine - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Palestine cover image

Palestine

September 8, 2026

Ramallah 1:24 am

22°C

Israeli soldiers take positions during a military operation in the town of Qalqiya, in the occupied West Bank, Dec. 4, 2025.

Katz warns PA against 'Oct. 7-style' attack as West Bank violence rises

After a West Bank stabbing of an Israeli settler, Defense Minister Israel Katz warns the Palestinian Authority against launching an “Oct. 7-style” assault.

A woman walks past a model of a Lora missile, Israel's long range artillery missile at the Israel defence stall at the international DefExpo 2008 defence fair, in New Delhi on February 16, 2008. India kicked off South Asia's largest defence fair, with hundreds of global weapons firms offering their latest hardware to the country's technology-hungry military. About 450 weapons companies from 30 countries are present at the four-day "DefExpo" in New Delhi, with several big-ticket announcements expected. AFP P

Analysis

LORA missile test reveals limits of Germany’s Gaza criticism of Israel

The German navy tested Israel’s LORA ballistic missile as Berlin considers acquiring the system, deepening defense ties with Israel despite criticism of the Gaza war.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

Israeli soldiers arrive in the village of Qusra, south of Nablus in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, which has faced escalating Israeli settler violence over the past month, on Aug. 29, 2026.

Analysis

As Israeli settler attacks mount, Trump avoids public pressure on Netanyahu

President Donald Trump has stayed silent amid a spate of settler attacks on Palestinians and their property in the West Bank.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Evan Vucci / Getty Images

Analysis

Why Palestinians see success of Trump talks as contingent on Israeli elections

Some view the channel to Jared Kushner as necessary for reaching a political settlement, but others see a US effort to secure Palestinian acquiescence to Trump’s Gaza plans.

Mohammed Najib

By Mohammed Najib

Latest News

Israel, Hamas bide their time as Gaza peace plan stalls

A boy walks carrying a table on his back past salvage workers scrapping the rubble of a building that was destroyed during Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza City on Aug. 16, 2026. — Photo by Omar Al-Qattaa / AFP via Getty Images

Ex-defense minister: Israel in ‘worst possible’ Gaza situation as Hamas gains strength

Palestinian militant group Hamas police officers stand guard as people attend the opening of the Fatah party's eighth general conference at Al-Azhar University in Gaza City on May 14, 2026.

Beatrice Farhat

Associate Editor (Lebanon)

In Beirut, reporting on regional news, culture, conflict

Daoud Kuttab

Palestine Columnist

In Amman, reporting on Palestinian politics

Rasha Abou Jalal

In Gaza City, reporting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Abeer Ayyoub

In Istanbul, reporting on Palestine

Naima Morelli

In Rome, reporting on Middle East culture

Fatima AbdulKarim

In Ramallah, reporting on the West Bank

Abbas tightens grip on Palestinian governmental bodies

Some Palestinian factions claim President Mahmoud Abbas' recent appointments for Executive Committee posts show that he is tightening his grip on the PLO.

Palestinians and Arab Israelis demonstrate in solidarity with protests in the Gaza Strip on May 4, 2018 near the Erez crossing point with Gaza. - Hundreds of Palestinians began gathering along the Gaza Strips border with Israel for a sixth consecutive Friday of mass protests following violence in which dozens of Gazans have been killed by Israeli forces. (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP) (Photo credit should read AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP/Getty Images)

Without conscription, will Israel's Arab citizens ever obtain equal rights?

The relative contribution of Arab Israelis to the shaping of Israeli culture, economy and science is more significant than that of their Druze neighbors, yet Israeli Jewish society refuses to acknowledge it.

Gaza’s aspiring female artists drop paint brushes for solid jobs

Young female artists in Gaza are finding themselves stuck between economic woes and social constraints, leading many to forgo their passion to paint.

Israel-Hamas cease-fire deal has wide-ranging implications

By holding indirect talks with Hamas about a long-term cease-fire, Israel is indicating that it views and accepts the Islamist movement as the political sovereign of Gaza, a shift that could have significant repercussions.

Is Palestine prepared for a major earthquake?

A string of minor earthquakes has drawn attention to the fact that in the event of a strong seismic activity in the West Bank, Palestinian lives are at risk and the infrastructure could be severely damaged.

How Trump's strong support for Israel harms pro-settler party

The settler-friendly US administration is stealing away the agenda of the Israeli national-religious party and depriving it of an important enemy.

Will canceled camps mean a deadly summer for Gaza's children?

As the Great Return March enters its 18th week, the killing of Majdi al-Satari, 12, by an Israeli sniper at the Gaza-Israel border highlights the lack of summer camps this year to keep children busy elsewhere.

Palestinian girls nurture 'Flower' magazine behind bars

Two years ago, a small group of teenage Palestinian girls created a secret magazine inside their Israeli prison. Now, they hope to revive it.

A Palestinian woman sits outside her house as she escapes the heat during a power cut at Shatti (beach) refugee camp in Gaza City September 15, 2015. Power has been provided to different areas in the impoverished coastal territory in six-hour shifts as Gaza's lone power plant shut its generators on Saturday due to a fuel shortage, energy officials said. Electricity is also supplied to the Gaza grid through power lines from Israel and Egypt. Gaza's plant provides electricity to two-thirds of its population.

Gaza cannot wait for a miracle

The crisis in Gaza leaves no time to dream of grandiose solutions, such as an artificial island or desalination plants, and only immediately allowing thousands of Gazans to work in Israel can alleviate the pressure.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the Knesset Plenary Hall session ahead of the vote on the National Law on late July 18, 2018. - Israel's parliament adopted a law defining the country as the nation state of the Jewish people, provoking fears it could lead to blatant discrimination against Arab citizens. (Photo by Marc Israel Sellem / AFP) / Israel OUT (Photo credit should read MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/AFP/Getty Images)

Why Israel’s Nationality Law could be good for Palestinians

The recently adopted Nationality Law could actually help Palestinians in a way, as they might not need to specifically recognize Israel as the homeland of the Jews as part of peace negotiations.

People walk on a railway track as Egyptian army troops are deployed outside the of the presidential palace in Cairo on December 12, 2012, one day after thousands of Egyptians protested against the upcoming referendum on the new draft constitution. Egypt's powerful army has called for President Mohamed Morsi and the secular opposition to meet later in the day to stop a crisis over an imminent constitutional referendum from tearing the country apart. AFP PHOTO/GIANLUIGI GUERCIA (Photo credit should rea

Will public opposition stop proposed Egypt-Israel railway dead in its tracks?

Egyptian media outlets are making a fuss about a recent meeting between Israel's ambassador to Cairo, David Govrin, and the director of the Ibn Khaldun Center for Development Studies, Saad Eddin Ibrahim, discussing a railway between Egypt and Israel.

Palestinian's interview on Israeli program sparks backlash

The appearance of a Hamas-affiliated political analyst on Israeli i24News channel unleashed charges of "media normalization" with Israel.