Israel/ Palestine

( The Times of Israel ) – As we wait anxiously to see whether the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas will take hold and become permanent—ending the massacres in Gaza and bringing the hostages home—we find ourselves in the midst of Sukkot, the festival of fragile dwellings [or “Feast of the Tabernacles”]. During Sukkot, […]

Authoritarianism

We Must Not Look Away from Palestine: Resisting Oppression and Pursuing Justice

Roy Eidelson

Roy Eidelson Note: This essay is adapted from the author’s August address at the American Psychological Association annual convention and from a webinar he presented in early September. The webinar includes many visual depictions of the topics discussed here. ( Counterpunch ) – Welcome everyone. I’m Roy Eidelson, president of the Society for the Study of Peace, […]

Corporate Surveillance

Israel/Palestine: Microsoft Should Avoid Contributing to Rights Abuses

Human Rights Watch

Further Due Diligence Needed After Suspension of Some Cloud and AI Services Human Rights Watch — (New York, October 10, 2025) – Microsoft should suspend business activities that are contributing to grave human rights abuses and international crimes by the Israeli military and other Israeli government bodies, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Access Now, and […]

Featured

Israeli Government Votes to Implement Trump Peace Plan for Gaza as Hamas Pledges to Uphold it

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – According to the Israeli newspaper Arab 48 , the Israeli government on Friday approved the ceasefire in Gaza and the hostage exchange, and agreed to begin withdrawing troops from the west of the Strip. The approval came after the arrival of President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoys Steve Witkoff and […]

Israel/ Palestine

A short History of the Gaza Strip takes a long View of today’s Conflict

The Conversation

By Martin Kear, University of Sydney (The Conversation) – A Short History of the Gaza Strip, by historian Anne Irfan, is a timely addition to an important corpus of literature taking a historical and contextual view of the Palestinian/Israeli conflict. Review: A Short History of the Gaza Strip – Anne Irfan (W.W. Norton) By telling […]

Featured

As Ceasefire Looms, Gaza’s Children are Still Starving

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Trump peace plan has resulted in an agreement between Hamas and Israel to pause fighting and exchange prisoners. Other points in the plan, including an Israeli troop withdrawal and the laying down of arms by Hamas, appear still to be being negotiated, which is to say that we are […]

Israel/ Palestine

Urgent Next Steps for Palestine at the UN, Regardless of the Trump Plan

Nicolas J. S. Davies

( Codepink ) – As U.S. President Donald Trump surely intended, his “20-point Gaza plan” succeeded in upstaging calls by many other world leaders at the UN General Assembly for concrete, coordinated UN-led measures to force Israel to end its criminal genocide in Gaza and the illegal occupation of Palestine. Trump’s White House meeting with […]

Israel/ Palestine

Israel/Palestine: States Should Act to Halt Atrocities

Human Rights Watch

2 Years Since October 7, 2023 Highlights Need to Protect Civilians Human Rights Watch – (Jerusalem) – United States President Donald Trump’s “Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict,” announced on September 29, 2025, is no substitute for the urgent action governments need to take to protect civilians and support justice after two years of grave abuses […]

Israel/ Palestine

Trump’s Gaza Initiative: Chance for Peace or Empty Words?

Middle East Monitor

by Azmat Ali ( Middle East Monitor ) – After nearly two years of war in Gaza, a sudden and surprising development has emerged. Hamas has issued a statement agreeing in principle to release all Israeli captives it holds — both the living and the remains of the dead — and to hand over […]