Steps to a two state solution: For Israel, for Palestine, for peace Step Thirteen: Support the development of Rawabi The first pre-planned Palestinian city, Rawabi is a $1.4bn development in the West Bank and the brainchild of Palestinian entrepreneur and businessman Bashar Masri. Close to Ramallah, the project has faced Read more…
Israel has seized 30 digital wallets allegedly used by Hamas to fundraise, according to the Israeli Defence Ministry. Defence minister Benny Gantz approved the seizure of the cryptocurrency wallets from 12 accounts, owned by an exchange company based in the Gaza Strip, which has since been declared a terror group Read more…
Millions of euros of EU aid to the Palestinian Authority are stuck in Brussels as the European Commission discussed whether to condition parts of the assistance on Palestinian school curriculum reform. The EU, the PA’s single largest donor, helps to pay the salaries of many PA civil servants. Between 2008 Read more…
Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine has prompted a host of reactions from the Middle East, though few of these have been as unequivocal as in Europe or North America. What happened Israeli foreign minister Yair Lapid confirmed on Monday that Israel would vote in favour of a UN General Assembly resolution condemning Read more…
Steps to a two state solution: For Israel, for Palestine, for peace Step Twelve: Pressure the Palestinian Authority to stop human rights abuses Alongside Mahmoud Abbas’ failure to hold elections in the Palestinian Territories since 2007, the Palestinian Authority has, in recent years, shown a growing unwillingness to tolerate political and Read more…
LFI Parliamentary Supporter Christian Wakeford today took part in a backbench debate on recognising Palestinian statehood. In his contributions, Christian warned against unilateral actions and made clear that “the best route to sustainable progress lies through direct negotiations” between Israel and the Palestinians. He also made the case for “concrete Read more…
A delegation of visiting congressional Democrats expressed their concern over the potential for intercommunal violence in Jerusalem last week, but were assured by senior Israeli officials’ commitment to lowering tensions, according to the Times of Israel. Representative Ro Khanna told the Times of Israel that the delegation was assured that Read more…
Emilie Moatti, Labor MK and head of the Knesset subcommittee on foreign affairs, last week convened a meeting on civil initiatives for advancing cooperation between Israelis and Palestinians. “Today is the first of a series of meetings I am planning throughout the year to examine our relations with the Palestinians”, Read more…
Steps to a two state solution: For Israel, for Palestine, for peace Step Eleven: Demand Hamas releases hostages Hamas should also be pressured to end its practice of holding hostages as a bargaining chip to attempt to free terrorist prisoners held in Israel. Hamas is currently holding the bodies of Read more…
Naftali Bennett lauded a new “regional architecture of moderate countries” in the Middle East as he left Bahrain on Tuesday evening, completing the first official visit by an Israeli prime minister to the Gulf State. What happened Bennett’s visit to Bahrain saw the prime minister meet with King Hamad bin Isa Al Read more…
The US Agency for International Development last week announced appointments to an advisory board to recommend how to distribute $250 million in funding for Israeli-Palestinian coexistence projects. The filling of the board is a major step forward since the passing of the Nita M. Lowey Middle East Partnership for Peace Read more…
A rare meeting of the Palestine Liberation Organisation’s Central Council held this week strengthened the position of Mahmoud Abbas and dropped further clues as to the long-standing president’s potential eventual successor. What happened Abbas loyalists joined the PLO’s Executive Committee and will head its top decision-making body, the National Council. Read more…