Al Monitor
Director General of Community Media Network, a media NGO that works in Jordan and the Palestinian territories; columnist for Al Monitor; former director of the Institute of Modern Media at Al Quds University in Jerusalem and former Ferris Professor of Journalism at Princeton University (2007-2008)
Tensions Escalate between Israelis and Palestinians The conflict between Israelis and Palestinians reached new heights today in the wake of killings of teenagers on both sides of the divide in the West Bank. This morning Israel began to mobilize troops in the area of the Gaza strip; reportedly it’s in response to a sharp increase in shelling by Hamas into Israeli territory over the last 24 hours.
Will President Obama Raise New Hopes for Middle East Peace? As President Obama plunged back into the perils of Middle East diplomacy , the White House worked hard to lower expectations. But in his visit with Palestinians in Ramallah and his speech in Jerusalem to Israeli students were all about hope for peace and the necessity of a two-state solution.
UN Votes to Give Palestine Non-Member Observer State Status Yesterday, the General Assembly gave the Palestinian Territories new status at the United Nations. Opposition, including that of the US, mustered just nine voters against 138. Last night, Israel took steps toward expanding settlements in disputed East Jerusalem.
Palestinians Seize the World Stage To a standing ovation from the General Assembly, PLO leader Mahmoud Abbas applied for full Palestinian membership in the United Nations today. On the streets of Ramallah, rapturous crowds waved flags and cheered a speech that attacked Israel as an occupying power defiant of UN resolutions.
Israel, the West Bank and the Palestinians at the UN On of the biggest protests in the history of Israel is a development that's not being covered much in the US news media. What's at stake for the Netanyahu government? What does it have to do with settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem?
Israel, the West Bank and the Palestinians at the UN Israel's month-long protest movement has spread beyond Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. Some 30,000 protesters turned out this weekend in Haifa, 10,000 in Beersheba and thousands more in smaller cities. The total was less than the 300,000 in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem a week ago, but enough to demonstrate widespread unhappiness.
Do the Middle East Peace Talks Have a Future? President Obama said renewing direct talks between Israel and the Palestinians might produce peace in a year. But just three months later, they aren't talking at all and it's back to shuttle diplomacy.
Do the Middle East Peace Talks Have a Future? Just three months after President Obama took credit for renewing direct talks between Israel and the Palestinians, they're not talking at all. Palestinians demanded a freeze on Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem, but even America's offer of billions in fighter jets could not get Israel to agree.
After 10 Days, No Let-up in Gaza The invasion of Gaza is ten days old and there's no sign of a slowdown as Hamas vows to continue firing rockets across the border and Israel vows to continue until they stop. More than 500 Palestinians have died in the past 10 days; 2600 have been wounded. Five Israelis have died from Hamas rocket fire.
There Is No Let-up in the Fighting in Gaza The invasion of Gaza is 10 days old, and there's no sign of a slowdown. Israel says the invasion will go on until Hamas can no longer fire rockets over the border. Hamas says the rockets won't stop. More than 500 Palestinians have died in the past 10 days; 2600 have been wounded. Five Israelis have died from Hamas rocket fire.
Obama in Israel and the West Bank Barack Obama threaded his way through a minefield today, from Jerusalem's Holocaust memorial and Sderot, an Israeli town near the border with Gaza and a frequent target of Palestinian rocket fire, to Ramallah on the Palestinian West Bank. In Israel, John McCain is a known quantity and there's anxiety about what changes Obama might bring.
Do it for the kids, Gavin Gavin Newsom’s early policy proposals offer a glimmer of hope for California’s youngest residents.
Who are the political players in the LA teachers strike? Thousands of LA public school teachers are going to be back out on the picket lines for a second day. They walked off the job Monday after failing to reach a contract agreement with the LA Unified School District, despite months of negotiations.
Could agave become Santa Barbara’s next major crop? In many ways, growing agave in Santa Barbara makes a lot of sense. Not only does it use very little water and thrive on generally inhospitable land, but it can act as a fuel break for wildfires.
Left, Right & Center presents: Two Years, Diaries of a Divided Nation Listen to America change… one person at a time. For these six people, the politics of the Trump era have changed everyday life. Follow them in real time through the tumultuous two years since he became president.
