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

Palestine cover image

Palestine

July 12, 2025

Ramallah 10:07 am

31°C

A Palestinian man searches for things to rescue at a garbage waste dump in the Al-Bureij camp in the central Gaza Strip on July 7, 2025.

Analysis

Trump pushes for Gaza ceasefire, but can he guarantee end of war?

Of the remaining hurdles to achieving a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, the most difficult to overcome may be the militants’ demand for a guaranteed end to the war.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

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

Bibi

Netanyahu ends US visit with no Gaza deal but progress on reconstruction

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has departed Washington with little to show for his meetings with President Donald Trump.

United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on the Rights Situation in the Palestinian Territories Francesca Albanese (L).

US sanctions UN official overseeing Palestinian rights

The sanctions come on the heels of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's meeting with President Donald Trump.

Latest News

Exclusive

Palestinian FM: Ready to work with Trump; Saudi payments to PA resumed

Palestinian Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Varsen Aghabekian speaks during a UN Security Council meeting on Gaza in light of ceasefire and hostage release at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City on Jan. 20, 2025.

Daoud Kuttab

By Daoud Kuttab

In Amman, reporting on Palestinian politics

White House upbeat about Gaza deal as Hamas signals impasse

A Palestinian boy searches for things to rescue at a garbage waste dump in the Al-Bureij camp in the central Gaza Strip on July 7, 2025.

Analysis

With Hamas dismantled, Netanyahu seeks Trump’s green light to strike Iran again

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) holds the letter he sent to the Nobel Peace Prize committee to nominate US President Donald Trump (L) for the Nobel Peace Prize during a dinner in the Blue Room of the White House, Washington, July 7, 2025.

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Iran talks, Gaza war set to dominate Netanyahu-Trump meeting

Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

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

TOPSHOT - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a press conference in Jerusalem on May 21, 2025. Netanyahu said on May 21 that he was ready for a "temporary ceasefire" to guarantee the return of hostages held in Gaza, of whom 20 are "certainly" alive. (Photo by Ronen Zvulun / POOL / AFP) (Photo by RONEN ZVULUN/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

From strikes to strategy: Netanyahu seeks cover — and credit — in Trump meeting

The Israeli prime minister arrives at the White House victorious after Trump's decision to strike Iranian nuclear sites, his trial dates postponed, and Gaza on the radar.

Palestinians carry their belongings as they flee Gaza City, May 16, 2025.

Analysis

Netanyahu looks to Trump for Gaza ultimatum to leverage against far right

The ultimatum, to counter far-right threats to bring down the government if a ceasefire is reached with Hamas, is one of several items on the wish list he's taking to Washington.

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Cautious optimism around Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal but hurdles remain

The latest Qatari outline is based on a previous US proposal and has Israel somewhat hopeful for a deal with Hamas.

Palestinians wait in a queue to receive food outside a distribution center south of Khan Younis, on Dec. 6, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.

Over 170 global NGOs call for end of US-backed GHF operations in Gaza

More than 170 major nongovernmental organizations called for the immediate end to the US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, amid the rising death toll near its distribution centers in Gaza.

Debris is scattered across the floor at Al-Baqa cafeteria which was devastated in an Israeli strike on the Gaza City seafront on June 30, 2025.

Israeli strike on cafe in Gaza kills at least 33, medics say: What to know

The Israeli military on Monday stepped up its operations in Gaza, calling for Palestinians to evacuate large areas of the north and carrying out fresh strikes, including one on a beachfront cafe.

Former French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin arrives to attend a church service for former French President Jacques Chirac at the Saint-Sulpice church in Paris on September 30, 2019. - Former French President Jacques Chirac died on September 26, 2019 at the age of 86.

Interview

Former French PM says Trump has ‘immense opportunity’ in Mideast

Dominique de Villepin, who recently announced a new political party, says in an exclusive written interview with Al-Monitor that France has a vital role to play in promoting regional cooperation.

Dominique de Villepin

Dominique de Villepin

Former French prime minister

US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office of the White House, Washington, DC, Feb. 4, 2025.

Analysis

How Trump’s call to end Netanyahu’s trial is linked to broader Gaza deal

The coordinated effort, involving an agreement with Hamas and expansion of the Abraham Accords, also envisions a Nobel Peace Prize for Trump and a pardon for Netanyahu.

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Palestinian Fawzya Ishreiteh clears burnt belongings in the living and kitchen area of her family house after a reported attack overnight by Israelis from a nearby settlement, in Susya south of Hebron city in the occupied West Bank on June 25, 2025. Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967, and violence there has soared since the start of the Gaza war in 2023. The West Bank is home to about three million Palestinians, but also some 500,000 Israelis living in settlements that are illegal under internatio

At least 4 Palestinians killed in West Bank as Israeli settler violence rises: What to know

Israeli settlers stormed a number of Palestinian villages and towns in the West Bank following a string of deadly attacks by settlers and military forces.

Pope Leo XIV exchanges skullcap (zucchetto) during an audience to the participants in the Meeting of Priests promoted by the Dicastery for the Clergy at the auditorium Conciliazione in Rome on June 26, 2025. (Photo by Alberto PIZZOLI / AFP) (Photo by ALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP via Getty Images)

Pope Leo decries 'special interests' and MidEast wars, calls Gaza 'inhumane'

The pontiff described the situation in Gaza as “tragic and inhumane,” saying that international law is being cast aside in favor of force.

TOPSHOT - Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas holds a placard showing maps of (L to R) historical Palestine, the 1937 Peel Commission partition plan, the 1947 United Nations partition plan on Palestine, the 1948-1967 borders between the Palestinian territories and Israel, and a map of US President Donald Trump's proposal for a Palestinian state under his new peace plan, as he speaks in the West Bank's Ramallah on September 3, 2020, as he meets by video conference with representatives of Palestinian factions

Abbas sends letter to Trump, offers to work on Israeli-Palestinian deal

In the letter, Abbas showered Trump with praise, saying the US president "can achieve what seemed impossible: a recognized, free, sovereign, and secure Palestine; a recognized and secure Israel."