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

Palestine cover image

Palestine

September 23, 2026

Ramallah 7:51 pm

21°C

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and French President Emmanuel Macron arrive to hold a joint press conference in Jerusalem, Oct. 24, 2023.

Analysis

After France's settlement ban, Israel sees no warming of ties with Macron government

Israeli diplomats say France’s decision to ban imports from West Bank settlements has brought bilateral relations to an unprecedented low point.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

Jewish settlement of Kedumim, in the West Bank

Analysis

Europe’s West Bank trade ban fires warning shot at Israel’s economy

Weeks before key Israeli elections, a dozen nations announced new trade restrictions targeting settlements in the West Bank, delivering a sharp rebuke to Israel's government that could presage additional international pressure.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Chaim Goldberg / AFP via Getty Images

Netanyahu threatens to sue Haaretz for reporting UAE warned Israel of Oct. 7 attack

The Emirati president reportedly warned that a planned attack could cause bloodshed, destabilize the region and threaten the Abraham Accords.

Palestinians hold up the green Hamas flag during a protest by supporters of both the Fatah and Hamas movements, as they rally in support of the Palestinian people following Friday noon prayers in Hebron, occupied West Bank, Nov. 3, 2023.

Majority of Palestinians lose trust in Hamas and Fatah, new poll finds

A recent poll by a Palestinian survey center found that trust in Palestinian factions has declined, amid stalled efforts to implement the Gaza peace plan and escalating settler violence in the West Bank.

Latest News

12 countries including France, UK, Canada end trade with West Bank settlements

West Bank settlements

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

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

Analysis

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

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

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

Analysis

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

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.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

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

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

Samer al-Issawi, one of four Palestinians held by Israel who has been on an intermittent hunger strike, gestures as he leaves Jerusalem's magistrates' court February 19, 2013. Hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails declared a one-day fast on Tuesday in solidarity with four inmates whose hunger strike has fuelled anti-Israel protests in the occupied West Bank. Gaunt and wheelchair-bound, Issawi appeared on Tuesday before the Jerusalem civil court, which deferred releasing him for at least another

Israel Offers Deportation To Samer Issawi

Israel has offered Samer Issawi deportation instead of release, which is a serious violation of human rights, Daoud Kuttab writes.

A Palestinian woman waits for the return of Fatah movement activists at the Rafah border crossing in the southern Gaza Strip December 3, 2012. The Islamist Hamas group allowed the 10 activists of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah movement, who fled Gaza into Egypt in 2007 during internal fighting between the two political rivals, to return home in what the group said was a sign of rapprochement, according to a Hamas official. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3

Mother of the Year Award Goes to Gaza Widow

Aisha Abu Shannab lost her husband and son to war, but has managed to raise her remaining children and run a small NGO for widows in Gaza, Rami Almeghari writes.

A Palestinian protester holds stones as she stands near broken glass during clashes with Israeli soldiers outside Israel's Ofer military prison near the West Bank city of Ramallah February 25, 2013. The death of Palestinian Arafat Jaradat on Saturday in an Israeli jail and a hunger strike by four other Palestinian inmates have raised tension in the occupied territory after repeated clashes between stone-throwers and Israeli soldiers in recent days. REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL

Palestinian Women Set Back By Conservative Society

Recent moves against women's rights in Gaza show a retraction of the once revered role of Palestinian women in the resistance, Daoud Kuttab writes.

A Jordanian activist and relative of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons who are on a hunger strike holds a placard during a protest outside the Red Cross offices in Amman February 21, 2013. The placard reads: "Name of Palestinian prisoner: Samer Al Issawi, date of his hunger strike: August 1, 2012." REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed (JORDAN - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS) - RTR3E2WO

My Mother Inspired Us to Fight For Palestinian Rights

On International Women’s Day, lawyer-activist Shireen Issawi writes about how her mother inspired her and her brother, Samer Issawi, who has been on a hunger strike in an Israeli prison for some 222 days, to fight for Palestinian independence.

A Palestinian girl cries as she attends a rally protesting Monday's killing of the three sons of a Palestinian intelligence chief loyal to President Mahmous Abbas in Gaza December 13, 2006 in front of a poster depicting a schoolmate of the slain children. Tensions and violence have spiralled in Gaza and the occupied West Bank between Hamas and the rival Fatah faction of Abbas after attempts to form a national unity government failed. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem (GAZA) - RTR1KCOZ

Gaza Sees Rise in Violence, Crime

Violence and lawlessness are on the rise in Gaza, reports Hazem Balousha.

Palestinian protesters throw stones at Israeli soldiers during clashes in the West Bank village of Qusra near Nablus September 23, 2011. Israeli security forces shot dead a Palestinian in the West Bank on Friday during a confrontation in his village with Jewish settlers, Palestinian officials said. Tensions have been growing between Palestinians and settlers who stake a biblical claim to the West Bank, as the Palestinian leadership prepared to seek full U.N. membership for a state partly on the Israeli-occu

Israeli Authorities Mostly Ignore Settler Attacks on Palestinian Village

The inhabitants of the Palestinian village of Qusra are regularly attacked by the Israeli settlers from nearby settlements, with the Israeli authorities doing little to help, reports Naela Khalil.

A pro-Palestinian activist flashes the victory sign after being detained by Jordanian police during a demonstration in front of the Israeli embassy in Amman August 30, 2012. Activists protested against Israeli and Jordanian authorities after being barred from entering the West Bank through King Hussein Bridge (Allenby Bridge), around 35 km (22 miles) southeast of the Jordanian capital Amman, to deliver aid to students. REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed (JORDAN - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR37AIV

Israel Restricts Entry of Foreigners Into Palestinian Territories

Israel is increasingly preventing foreign passport holders from entering the Palestinian territories, Linah Alsaafin reports.

Palestinian runner Worood Maslaha, 20, stretches as she practises with her trainer Saher Jura (unseen) at a field belonging to her family in the West Bank village of Asira Ash-Shamaliya near Nablus March 27, 2012. Four Palestinians will participate in the London Olympics and joining Maslaha will be Gaza runner Bahaa al-Farra, Cairo-based swimmer Ahmed Jabreel and swimmer Sabeen Kharyoon from Bethlehem. Picture taken March 27, 2012. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (WEST BANK - Tags: SPORT OLYMPICS ATHLETICS) - RTR3001Q

Hamas Bars Women From Gaza Marathon

Hamas' decision to bar women from UNRWA's annual Gaza marathon might have more to do with politics than religion, Abeer Ayyoub reports.

Labourers disembark a Palestinians-only bus before crossing through Israel's Eyal checkpoint as they returns to the West Bank, near Qalqilya March 4, 2013. Israel launched two Palestinians-only bus lines in the occupied West Bank on Monday, a step an Israeli rights group described as racist and which the Transport Ministry called an improvement in service. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS TRANSPORT) - RTR3EKIH

Segregation Existed BeforeNew Palestinian Bus Lines

Israel's new bus lines for Palestinian workers are not where segregation begins, Lena Odgaard reports.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (L) and Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan pose before a meeting in Ankara February 29, 2012. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR2YMY2

Erdogan Wins Palestinian Hearts and Minds

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s increasing political and economic support for the Palestinians has strengthened Turkey's ties with both the Palestinian Authority and Hamas, writes Adnan Abu Amer.

An Israeli policeman fires a tear gas canister during clashes with Palestinian protesters at a demonstration against the closure of Shuhada street to Palestinians, in the West Bank city of Hebron February 24, 2012. Some 200 protesters, including foreign and Israeli activists, gathered on Friday marking the 18th anniversary of the closure of the street, which was closed by the Israeli army in 1994 following the Hebron mosque massacre by Baruch Goldstein, an Israeli settler, who went on a rampage inside Al Ib

Palestinians, Activists Protest Israeli Settlement in Hebron

Nowhere are Israeli settlement policies more evident and combustible than in the Palestinian city of Hebron, Daoud Kuttab writes.

A Palestinian man carries flowers for export on a flower farm in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip December 20, 2012. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa (GAZA - Tags: SOCIETY) - RTR3BRZM

Gaza Farmers Lament Israeli Blockade

Despite Israel allowing limited agricultural exports from the Gaza Strip, Gazan farmers continue to struggle with diminished incomes and difficult working conditions due to the blockade, reports Hazem Balousha.