Middle Orient

In the heart of East Jerusalem, a cultural and economic upheaval is taking place as ancient olive groves are being demolished to make way for new development in Israel. Olive trees, symbols of peace deeply rooted in Palestinian heritage, are being uprooted, causing significant repercussions that extend beyond the simple …

Thus far, October’s exchanges of fire between Hizbollah and Israel have stayed within the sides’ red lines. Still, with an Israeli ground invasion of Gaza looming, risks are tremendous. A Gaza ceasefire, while improbable, is the only way to rule out a broader war. Since 8 October, the second day …

Thus far, Hizbollah and Israel have avoided a disastrous escalation on the Israeli-Lebanese border as the Gaza war rages. But trouble lies ahead. Western-led mediation remains the best way to restore security to the frontier. The latest round in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has ushered in a new phase in the …

On December 4, 2023, the Hamas movement announced the establishment of a new youth movement in the Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon called the Al-Aqsa Flood Pioneers, which will constitute, according to Hamas, a “vanguard resistance force which will take part in the liberation of Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque.” In …

Against Erasure (Haymarket Books) is a book, edited by Teresa Aranguren and Sandra Barrilaro, that presents a pictorial history of Palestinians. The photos refute the often-heard canard that Palestine was a land without people. More importantly, the historicity of the photos humanizes the Palestinians. It seems ludicrous to anyone familiar …

The dramatic, earth-shattering events in Palestine starting on October 7 have taken many people by surprise. However, attentive observers are not. Few expected that Palestinian fighters would be parachuting into southern Israel on October 7; that instead of capturing a single Israeli soldier – as done in 2006 – hundreds …

Large-scale violence has erupted again between Palestinians and Israel, prompting a fresh round of analyses. Most of the international media is evaluating the war through the lens of business and political allegiances. In such interpretations, the current conflict is cut off from its historical setting. According to most media reports, …

Analysts see the reappointment of Lebanon’s army commander, Joseph Aoun, as a stabilizing influence that is key to keeping Lebanon relatively peaceful at a time of border skirmishes with Israel. It is not clear, though, whether he can keep Lebanon out of a conflict with Israel and avoid a growing …

Qatar seems to be the “go-to guy” for almost anything important going on in the last few months, especially over the last weeks. The influence of the Emir Tamim Bin Hadad Al-Thani has grown completely out of proportion, and for a good reason: Qatar invests heavily in the Western world, …

The combat arena: The IDF forces continued to attack terrorist targets in a number of central locations in the Gaza Strip, among them Daraj and Tufah in the northern Gaza Strip, the al-Bureij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip and Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip, where the …