Palestine - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Palestine cover image

Palestine

September 29, 2026

Ramallah 11:21 am

21°C

Israeli PM

On secret UAE visit, Netanyahu asked MBZ to deny pre-Oct. 7 warnings

During his trip to Abu Dhabi, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked President Mohamed bin Zayed to deny reports that he had been warned ahead of the Oct. 7 attack that Hamas was preparing a major assault.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and French President Emmanuel Macron arrive to hold a joint press conference in Jerusalem, Oct. 24, 2023.

Analysis

After France's settlement ban, Israel sees no warming of ties with Macron government

Israeli diplomats say France’s decision to ban imports from West Bank settlements has brought bilateral relations to an unprecedented low point.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

Jewish settlement of Kedumim, in the West Bank

Analysis

Europe’s West Bank trade ban fires warning shot at Israel’s economy

Weeks before key Israeli elections, a dozen nations announced new trade restrictions targeting settlements in the West Bank, delivering a sharp rebuke to Israel's government that could presage additional international pressure.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Chaim Goldberg / AFP via Getty Images

Netanyahu threatens to sue Haaretz for reporting UAE warned Israel of Oct. 7 attack

The Emirati president reportedly warned that a planned attack could cause bloodshed, destabilize the region and threaten the Abraham Accords.

Latest News

Majority of Palestinians lose trust in Hamas and Fatah, new poll finds

Palestinians hold up the green Hamas flag during a protest by supporters of both the Fatah and Hamas movements, as they rally in support of the Palestinian people following Friday noon prayers in Hebron, occupied West Bank, Nov. 3, 2023.

12 countries including France, UK, Canada end trade with West Bank settlements

West Bank settlements

Katz warns PA against 'Oct. 7-style' attack as West Bank violence rises

Israeli soldiers take positions during a military operation in the town of Qalqiya, in the occupied West Bank, Dec. 4, 2025.

Analysis

LORA missile test reveals limits of Germany’s Gaza criticism of Israel

A woman walks past a model of a Lora missile, Israel's long range artillery missile at the Israel defence stall at the international DefExpo 2008 defence fair, in New Delhi on February 16, 2008. India kicked off South Asia's largest defence fair, with hundreds of global weapons firms offering their latest hardware to the country's technology-hungry military. About 450 weapons companies from 30 countries are present at the four-day "DefExpo" in New Delhi, with several big-ticket announcements expected. AFP P

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

Beatrice Farhat

Associate Editor (Lebanon)

In Beirut, reporting on regional news, culture, conflict

Daoud Kuttab

Palestine Columnist

In Amman, reporting on Palestinian politics

Rasha Abou Jalal

In Gaza City, reporting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Abeer Ayyoub

In Istanbul, reporting on Palestine

Naima Morelli

In Rome, reporting on Middle East culture

Fatima AbdulKarim

In Ramallah, reporting on the West Bank

Cars drive behind a truck transporting a Zim container just outside Israel's port of Ashdod February 23, 2012. Zim, Israel's biggest shipping company, had to reach a debt settlement with its bond holders after they were hit by a downturn in the global shipping industry. Greek debt may be making headlines globally, but in Israel a trend of corporate debt settlements are making the front page. REUTERS/Amir Cohen (ISRAEL - Tags: BUSINESS) - RTR2YB9Y

Israeli Intellectuals Support European Sanctions

Many Israeli intellectuals are in favor of the European decision by which future agreements with Israel won't apply to settlements in the territories.

Palestinians wave Palestinian flags as Israeli youths celebrating Jerusalem Day gather in front of the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's Old City May 8, 2013. Jerusalem Day marks the anniversary of Israel's capture of the Eastern part of the city during the 1967 Middle East War. In 1980, Israel's parliament passed a law declaring united Jerusalem as the national capital, a move never recognised internationally. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS ANNIVERSARY) - RTXZEXA

US Appeals Court Rejects 'Jerusalem, Israel' on Passport

A US appeals court rejected an attempt by an American couple to have their son's birthplace listed as "Jerusalem, Israel" on his US passport.

Vice president and director of the Foreign Policy Program at the Brookings Institution in Washington D.C. , Martin Indyk, speaks during the U.S.- Islamic World Forum in Doha June 9, 2013. REUTERS/Mohammed Dabbous (QATAR - Tags: RELIGION) - RTX10HPL

The Kerry Talks: Blood, Sweat, Tears and Martin Indyk

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Chairman Abu Mazen must each realize that the other side is unable to fulfill the expected demands.

Boys wave Palestinian flags during a protest near the border between Israel and the northern Gaza Strip June 7, 2013. The protest was part of the Global March to Jerusalem initiative, marking the 46th anniversary of Israel's capture of East Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East war. REUTERS/Suhaib Salem (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST ANNIVERSARY) - RTX10F3F

Hamas Concerned About Tamarod Movement in Gaza

Hamas is worried that the Egyptian “rebellion” movement will migrate to Gaza.

Palestinian children attend a non-violence workshop in the West Bank caves village of Ghwein, near Hebron, April 30, 2007. REUTERS/Nayef Hashlamoun (WEST BANK) - RTR1P75B

Nonviolent Palestinian Protesters Fear Failure of Peace Talks

The Palestinian activists who have been nonviolently demonstrating for years worry that the failure of current negotiations will entail a new intifada.

Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal (R) attends a rally in Tehran university February 2, 2009. A delegation from Hamas, headed by its leader Meshaal, arrived in Tehran on Sunday as part of a regional push to reinforce support for the Palestinian group after the Israeli invasion of Gaza. The portraits on the left are that of Late Leader Ayatollah Rouollah Khomeini (L) and Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi (IRAN) - RTXB5LP

Will Hamas Re-Enter Iran's Orbit?

Former Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi's fall may encourage Iran and Hamas to renew ties.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivers a statement to the media at the Knesset, Israeli parliament, in Jerusalem July 22, 2013. Netanyahu will seek formal cabinet backing for reviving U.S.-sponsored peace talks with the Palestinians, an Israeli official said, after pro-settler ministers threatened to try and thwart the initiative. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX11V51

Likud Party Indifferent To Netanyahu's Peacemaking

Despite the coming resumption of negotiations, Likud Party leaders expect little from the renewed talks.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (L) meets with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the Mukataa compound, in the West Bank city of Ramallah July 19, 2013. REUTERS/Fadi Arouri/Pool (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX11S51

Leap of Faith Needed For Israeli-Palestinian Talks

Palestinians may have secured a prisoner release, but not much else.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arrives for a news conference at Queen Alia International Airport in the Jordanian capital of Amman July 19, 2013. Israel and the Palestinians have laid the groundwork for a resumption of peace talks after an almost three-year stalemate, Kerry said on Friday. REUTERS/Mandel Ngan/Pool (JORDAN - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX11S9P

Kerry Delivers Ambiguity To Shuttle Diplomacy

Kerry's mission and the failure to resume the negotiations on a more firm and clear basis than those tried before are examined.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry steps off his plane upon his arrival at Queen Alia International Airport in Amman, July 16, 2013. Kerry will discuss his effort to revive Israeli-Palestinian peace talks with Arab officials in Jordan on Wednesday, according to the State Department, which declined to comment on whether a resumption may be at hand. REUTERS/Mandel Ngan/Pool (JORDAN - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX11OB2

Predictable Ending Ahead For Israeli-Palestinian Negotiations?

If history is a guide, the Obama administration is unlikely to find success in its latest effort involving renewed Israeli-Palestinian direct negotiations.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (3rd L) attends a special cabinet meeting in Jerusalem, in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the birth of late Israeli Prime Minister Menahem Begin July 21, 2013. Netanyahu's tentative agreement to revive U.S.-sponsored peace talks with the Palestinians met scepticism and scorn on Sunday from some members of his rightist coalition government, including within his own party. Reuters/Uriel Sinai/Pool (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX11TPU

Can Netanyahu, Abu Mazen Make Peace?

Israelis and Palestinians have agreed on renewing negotiations, but the obstacles constitute an endless list of questions for which answers have been found, but will leaders agree to implement them?

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry steps out of an SUV as he prepares to depart from the Mukataa following a meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, in the West Bank city of Ramallah July 19, 2013. REUTERS/ Mandel Ngan/Pool (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX11S5Q

Kerry’s Best Kept Secret On the Middle East

The US uses its “invisible hand” for the latest mini-breakthrough in Israel.