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Palestine

October 31, 2026

Ramallah 4:38 am

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Tents sheltering Palestinians displaced by the Hamas-Israeli war are pitched between the rubble of destroyed buildings in the Jabalia camp, northern Gaza Strip, Oct. 20, 2026.

Analysis

What Israel's election could mean for Palestinians in Gaza, West Bank

The ouster of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could provide Palestinians some relief, but is unlikely to improve their prospects for statehood.

By Rosaleen Carroll

In Washington, DC, US, reporting on the Middle East

American freelance photojournalist Heidi Levine lies on a gurney in the emergency room of the government hospital in the Israeli-occupied city of Ramallah, as she is treated after being attacked by Israeli settlers while photographing Palestinian farmers harvesting their olives, in the Palestinian village of Abu Falah on Oct. 16, 2026.

Washington Post journalist hospitalized after Israeli settler attack in West Bank

The assault was one of several attacks on Friday as Palestinians gathered to harvest olives across the West Bank.

Israel's Chief of the Mossad David Barnea (R) and Security Agency director Ronen Bar, attend a ceremony marking the Hebrew calendar anniversary of the Hamas attack on October 7 last year that sparked the ongoing war in Gaza, at the Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem on October 27, 2024. (Photo by GIL COHEN-MAGEN / POOL / AFP) (Photo by GIL COHEN-MAGEN/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Former Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar sues Netanyahu for nearly $1M over Oct. 7 claims

Bar is suing for 3 million shekels ($970,000) over a Sept. 28 post on X in which Netanyahu blamed the former Shin Bet chief for Oct. 7 intelligence failures and accused him of withholding warnings.

The British Consulate General in east Jerusalem represents the British government in Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza during a protest against the recently announced British sanctions, aimed at economic activity in Israeli settlements in the West Bank, on Sept. 14, 2026, in Jerusalem.

Explainer

Israel-UK relations hit new low over settlements, Gaza: What to know

Despite Britain’s ban on goods from Israeli settlements and Israel’s closure of the British Consulate in East Jerusalem, both countries are seeking to keep communication channels open.

Latest News

West Bank olive harvest begins amid settler attacks on Palestinians, groves

Palestinian men sitting in and by a tractor look on after another man was injured by gunfire whilst being chased away by Israeli forces, in Aqraba in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Oct. 6, 2026.

Analysis

Three years after Oct. 7, Hamas’ grip on Gaza tests Netanyahu’s ‘total victory’

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during the state memorial ceremony for the third anniversary of Oct. 7 attack, at Mount Herzl military cemetery, Jerusalem, Oct. 5, 2026.

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Israel bars UK Greens leader over Zionism-racism resolution: What to know

Green Party leader Zack Polanski delivers his speech during day one of the Green Party annual conference at Brighton Centre on Oct. 2, 2026, in Brighton, England.

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

Erik Marmor/Getty Images

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, Israeli and foreign activists lift banners and placards during a demonstration against the Israeli occupation and settlement activity in the Palestinian territories and East Jerusalem, Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, Jerusalem, March 19, 2021.

Palestinians fight to keep property in East Jerusalem

Palestinians continue to fight for their rights to their properties and homes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem, thanks to the support of Jordan that has historical documents proving their ownership.

A worker unloads a refrigerated truck carrying the first delivery of coronavirus vaccine via the United Nations Covax programme supporting poorer areas, to be kept at Palestinian Authority's storage facility in the West Bank city of Nablus, on March 17, 2021. - The Palestinian Authority said that vaccination would begin at the end of this week, primarily for those aged over 75, cancer patients and medical personnel.
Earlier, some 60,000 doses of Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines allocated to the Palestinians

Palestinians receive first batch of vaccines through COVAX

More than 60,000 doses of the AstraZeneca and Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines arrived in Ramallah on Wednesday.

Dahlan courts Gaza, Hamas with vaccine deliveries ahead of elections

Dismissed Fatah leader Mohammed Dahlan has arranged for the delivery of another shipment of coronavirus vaccines to the Gaza Strip, raising questions about the aid’s link to the upcoming elections.

Palestinian Minister of Women's affairs Haifa al-Agha (L) sits next to her predecessor in Gaza Jamila al-Shanti as she attends her first meeting with the new Palestinian government on June 8, 2014 in Gaza city. A unity government sworn in on last week under a reconciliation deal between Hamas and the West Bank-based Palestinian leadership to end seven years of rival administrations in the two territories. AFP PHOTO/MAHMUD HAMS (Photo credit should read MAHMUD HAMS/AFP via Getty Images)

Hamas appoints first woman to political bureau

Hamas announced March 14 appointing a woman as a member in its political bureau for the first time since its establishment in 1987, in an attempt to improve its image to the world and deny the patriarchal aspect of its leadership structure.

Palestinian fishermen gather their net along a beach in Gaza City at sunset on December 2, 2020. (Photo by MAHMUD HAMS / AFP) (Photo by MAHMUD HAMS/AFP via Getty Images)

Hamas claims Israeli drone, not Palestinian rocket, killed 3 fishermen

Hamas said the fishermen were killed by an explosives-carrying Israeli drone they found at sea, but others say it may have come from Palestinian rocket fire.

Why has Gulf aid to PA declined in recent years?

Official Palestinian data showed that Saudi support for the Palestinian 2020 budget drastically declined, raising many questions about the future of the Palestinian Authority on the economic and financial levels.

Salam Fayyad’s return to Palestine politics

Former Palestinian prime minister plans to participate in the upcoming Palestinian legislative elections. What does his entry into the election campaign mean?

A Palestinian man looks for his name on the electoral roll at a school in Gaza City on March 3, 2021, ahead of the first Palestinian elections in 15 years. - A deal reached between Palestinian rivals Fatah and Hamas to hold elections is aimed at renewing confidence in Palestinian governance ahead of a diplomatic push and talks with Israel. The parliamentary and presidential polls are set for May 22 and July 31, respectively. (Photo by Mohammed ABED / AFP) (Photo by MOHAMMED ABED/AFP via Getty Images)

Fatah sacks senior member, highlighting split ahead of elections

As Palestinians gear up for the upcoming presidential and legislative elections, sharp differences are emerging within the Fatah movement, leading to the formation of a number of lists headed by or including Fatah leaders, in what is set to weaken the official list and divide Fatah votes.

Hamas' Gaza leader reelected in internal vote

Yahya Sinwar has led the Palestinian group in Gaza since 2017.

West Bank town renovates ancient palaces belonging to prominent family

The municipality of the town of Arraba in the northern West Bank has been restoring the palaces of the Abd al-Hadi family, one of Palestine’s once most powerful and feudal families.

Palestinian Authority reimposes lockdowns amid lack of vaccines

A year after the COVID-19 pandemic erupted in the Palestinian territories, the government reimposed total lockdown measures in several governorates in the West Bank amid the unprecedented rise in cases and deaths and the drained health care sector.

Palestinian shot in the West Bank after clash with Israeli soldiers

Clashes between Israelis and Palestinians are common in the territory.