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

Palestine cover image

Palestine

October 2, 2026

Ramallah 6:14 am

15°C

Erik Marmor/Getty Images

West Bank settlers attack Israeli activists as Netanyahu claims 'hoax'

On Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the attention surrounding settler violence was a “tremendous hoax.”

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

Latest News

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

Chaim Goldberg / AFP via Getty Images

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.

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

Palestinian street vendor pushes his carriage of vegetebles in the West
Bank City of Ramallah April 8, 2002, during a four-hour lift of the
army-imposed curfew. Israeli troops fired shots at the Church of the
Nativity in Bethlehem on Monday and battled Palestinian gunmen in the
West Bank towns of Jenin and Nablus, defying U.S. demands for an end to
their offensive REUTERS/Osama Silwadi REUTERS

LB/FMS - RTR3E66

Ramallah Wages War on Cart Sellers

Palestinian Authority police have evicted cart sellers from the streets of Ramallah to improve the city's look, angering vendors who now have no source of income, Linah Alsaafin reports.

U.S. President Barack Obama arrives with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (R) to make a statement on Middle East Peace talks in the East Room of the White House in Washington September 1, 2010. REUTERS/Jason Reed (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR2HTEC

Obama Visit to Israel an Opportunity

US President Barack Obama's upcoming visit to Israel is an opportunity for a new start in US policy in the region, writes Clovis Maksoud.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Qatar's Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani and Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal (L-R) talk before an agreement in Doha February 6, 2012. Rival Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas signed a deal in Qatar on Monday to form a unity government of independent technocrats for the West Bank and Gaza, headed by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. REUTERS/Stringer(QATAR - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR2XEG7

Fatah-Hamas Reconciliation Would Be a Reset for PLO

The PLO has gone through a number of changes throughout its history, and if Hamas and Fatah agree on a reconciliation deal, it'll be set for another revamp, Daoud Kuttab writes.

U.S. President Barack Obama welcomes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, March 5, 2012. REUTERS/Jason Reed (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR2YVL0

Obama’s Visit to Israel a Chance To Reset US-Israel Ties

Ben Caspit writes that President Barack Obama's visit to Israel will remind Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that diplomacy between Israel and the Palestinians is still at the top of the US agenda.

A Hamas policeman rides a motorcycle past a billboard promoting a film titled "Imad Aqel" in Gaza City August 3, 2009. "Imad Aqel", which had its premiere on Saturday, is the first feature film produced by the Islamist Hamas movement and the title is the name of a Palestinian militant whom Israel held accountable for the deaths of 13 soldiers and settlers. REUTERS/Ismail Zaydah (GAZA POLITICS SOCIETY ENTERTAINMENT) - RTR26DLS

The Death of Cinema in Gaza

As Islamist leaders in Gaza maintain a tight grip on the country’s cultural scene, Gazans themselves are divided in their views on cinema, writes Asmaa al-Ghoul.

An Israeli border police officer uses pepper spray to disperse Palestinian activists after the group set up tents and makeshift structures in protest against a nearby Jewish settlement in the West Bank village of Burin, south of Nablus February 2, 2013. Palestinians who set up a makeshift encampment in the occupied West Bank on Saturday clashed with Israeli soldiers and settlers and some light injuries were sustained.
REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS RELIGION CIVIL UNREST TPX IMAGES OF T

Israel Boycotts UN Report On Settlements

Akiva Eldar asks whether Israel’s continuous boycott of international investigation commissions really serves its best interests.

Palestinian Salafists take part in a protest against Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip February 24, 2012. The black flag reads "There is no god but Allah and Mohammad is the prophet". The white sign reads "Where are the traitor Arab rulers". REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR2YDGR

Salafists Feel Betrayed By Hamas' Moderate Stance

Since Hamas took power in 2006, Salafists in Palestine have been disappointed by its reluctance to impose an Islamic emirate, writes Adnan Abu Amer.

A Palestinian woman looks at a burnt room of three-year-old boy Fathi al-Bogdadi in Bureij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip September 26, 2012. Al-Bogdadi died and his infant sister suffered critical burns when a candle lit amid a power outage burnt their house down. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS DISASTER) - RTR38FOR

Anger Flares in Gaza After Deadly House Fire

An official investigation into last Thursday's house fire that killed a family of six absolved the Hamas government of responsibility, enraging the victims' relatives, Mohammed Suliman reports.

Palestinian first-graders sit with their schoolbooks during class in the West Bank city of Ramallah February 4, 2013. Israelis and Palestinians depict each other in schoolbooks as an enemy and largely deny their adversary's history and existence, according to a U.S. government-funded study published on Monday. REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman (WEST BANK - Tags: EDUCATION POLITICS) - RTR3DCHK

Textbook Study Debunks Myth of Palestinian Incitement

A major study of Israeli and Palestinian schoolbooks found that Palestinian children are not incited to hate, contrary to popular belief, reports Dalia Hatuqa.

Nayef Hawatmeh (L), secretary general of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) and Cuba's Vice Foreign Minister Marcos Rodriguez attend a meeting in Havana April 10, 2009. Hawatmeh is visiting Cuba for official talks between the Cuba's ruling Communist Party and the DFLP.
REUTERS/Enrique De La Osa (CUBA POLITICS) - RTXDVF6

Palestinian Revolutionary Seeks First Visit to Homeland

Daoud Kuttab writes about the bid of Nayef Hawatmeh, leader of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), to visit the occupied Palestinian territories for the first time.

Palestinians security officers stand in front of protesters during clashes at a demonstration against high living costs and the government in the West Bank city of Hebron September 10, 2012. Palestinian youths attacked a local police station and other government buildings in Hebron on Monday as protests against the rising cost of living in the occupied West Bank turned increasingly violent. REUTERS/Darren Whiteside (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR37S7M

Palestinian Authority Faces Crisis Over Salaries

The inability of the Palestinian Authority to pay its employees a salary for the last three months is beginning to have serious repercussions, writes Omar Shaban.

A Palestinian woman walks past a clothing store in the West Bank city of Ramallah September 4, 2012. Palestinian dreams of building a powerful economy to speed their drive towards independence could soon be plunged into darkness. The cash-strapped government of the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian Authority, is so behind with its bills that an Israeli electricity supplier has threatened to cut the power unless they pay outstanding debt of almost $80 million. Picture taken September 4, 2012. To match Feat

Hamas Pushes Islamization of Gaza

Following Al-Aqsa University's decision last week to impose the jilbab on female students, Abeer Ayyoub reports on a wider push by authorities to press Islamic law on Gaza's society.