#gaza-conflict

#gaza-conflict

For the first time in two years, the Christmas tree in Bethlehem lit up the night sky, restoring a glimmer of joy to the birthplace of Jesus after seasons overshadowed by Israel's genocidal war on Gaza. Palestinians watching the lighting said the celebration carried a dual meaning: Hope in the Nativity and a yearning for freedom from the Israeli siege gripping Bethlehem and cities across the occupied territory.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has requested that President Isaac Herzog pardon him of corruption charges in his five-year-long case, citing U.S. President Donald Trump's recent request for the favor and saying that it's necessary to advance the two leaders' joint interests as they ravage the Middle East. The prime minister made the request on Sunday, framing the trial as a "witch hunt" and a pardon as a way to unite Israel.

If you want to shoot without restraint, you can, Daniel, the commander of an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) tank unit, says in Breaking Ranks: Inside Israel's War, due to be broadcast in the UK on ITV on Monday evening. Some of the IDF soldiers who talked to the programme requested anonymity while others spoke on the record. All pointed to the evaporation of the official code of conduct concerning civilians.

Egypt and the European Union will hold their first summit on Wednesday in Brussels where leaders will discuss security, trade and migration as well as stability in Gaza. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa are expected to announce increased European economic assistance to Egypt and Egypt's admission to the EU's Horizons research incubation program,

"When we played together, he was happy to represent Palestine at the highest level," said Nader Ihmoud, an infielder for the team and editor in chief of Palestine in America.

This past July, I bought eggplants at the farmers' market, intending to make my grandmother's signature maqlubeh: the cinnamon-and-allspice-scented rice dish layered with fried eggplants and chicken, cooked in a pot, then flipped onto a serving platter, forming a golden dome. Before I had the chance to peel the eggplants, stripe by stripe, and drop them into hot oil, a WhatsApp message came in from my mother-a single, waving-hand emoji at an unusual hour.

Former MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan hasn't just taken the mask off; he's taunting those who were ever fooled by it. While the civilized world is celebrating the peace deal between Israel and Hamas brokered by President Donald Trump, Hasan is worried about it. Why? Because Hamas is set to give away its leverage, which happens to exist in the form of Jewish lives.

George Mitchell, the great US advocate for the Northern Ireland peace agreement, described diplomacy as 700 days of failure and one of success. In Gaza, tragically, there have been 730 days of failure and none of success. Indeed, the destruction, the death toll and the spillover of the conflict into other countries is a monument to shame diplomacy and what remains of international law. Arguably, it is the profession's lowest point since 1939.

Being an eternal optimist, I hoped that the events of 7 October 2023 Hamas's attack on southern Israel and breaking of the Israeli siege of Gaza might precipitate a reappraisal of Israeli strategy towards the Palestinians. I hoped Israeli leaders would come to realise the futility of protecting their country by building walls, however impregnable. Instead, the attack did the opposite.

Egypt and Qatar are working to convince Hamas to accept Donald Trump's ultimatum to end the war in Gaza, Egypt's foreign minister has said, as Trump gave a Sunday deadline to reply. Badr Abdelatty said the time had come for Hamas to disarm, and that Israel should be given no excuse to continue its offensive in Gaza, where it killed another 28 Palestinians on Friday.

Even for a man prone to hyperbole, President Donald Trump soared into the stratosphere this week by heralding the announcement of his new peace plan for the Middle East as "potentially one of the great days ever in civilization." The twenty-point plan is ambitiously, if vaguely, designed to end the nearly two-year war in Gaza; bring home all the hostages, both dead and alive; create a committee to govern the territory; demilitarize Hamas; and eventually eliminate "any danger posed in the region."

Friday's roster of speakers includes leaders from Israel, Pakistan, China, Ireland and Greece.

France has recognised a Palestinian state, joining several Western countries in doing so, ahead of the annual United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) meeting in New York. France today recognises a State of Palestine, Macron told the UN summit as the Palestinian delegation led an ovation, saying he was supporting peace between the Israeli and Palestinian people. list of 2 itemsend of list The Palestinian Authority on hailed the French move as a historic and courageous decision.

The conservative German chancellor insisted that Germany stood "firmly" with Israel but described its military response in Gaza as "disproportionate". "Criticism of the Israeli government must be possible, but we must never allow it to be used to incite hatred against Jews," he said, adding that he and Sanchez agreed on this point. But unlike Sanchez, Merz avoided calling the Israeli offensive in Gaza a "genocide" and made clear that Germany currently had no plans to recognise a Palestinian state, as Spain has done.

Ben & Jerry's co-founder Jerry Greenfield, whose name helped shape the popular ice cream brand, has quit the company, as its rift with parent Unilever ULVR.L deepened over its stance on the Gaza conflict. In an open letter addressing the Ben & Jerry's community that was shared by his partner Ben Cohen on social media platform X on Wednesday, Greenfield said that the Vermont-based company has lost its independence since Unilever curtailed its social activism.

Sally Rooney, Deborah Levy, Nobel laureate Annie Ernaux and Pulitzer winner Viet Thanh Nguyen are among 20 authors urging French president Emmanuel Macron to resume a lifeline programme for evacuating Palestinian writers, scholars and artists from Gaza. The Pause programme for writers and artists in emergency situations, as well as a student evacuation programme, were abruptly suspended by the French government at the beginning of August over a Palestinian student's allegedly antisemitic online remarks, a decision that the letter-writing authors said amounted to a collective

US political analyst John Mearsheimer argues that Israel attacked Qatar to preclude any closure to the war on Gaza. In the aftermath of an Israeli attack on Qatar targeting the leadership of Hamas, American political scientist John Mearsheimer argues, The Israelis are interested in making sure there are no negotiations that settle the conflict in Gaza. Mearsheimer tells host Steve Clemons that the United States and Israel basically act as a tag team, and despite a mild rebuke by President Donald Trump, the US supports Israel unconditionally.