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Palestine

July 31, 2026

Al Bīrah 6:52 am

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Flags of Spain and Argentina

Culture

How Argentina-Spain World Cup final became debate over Israel, Palestine

Governments and fans alike have turned teams and players into symbols of political division.

Government Media Office Director Ismail Thawabteh (R) and Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem (L) speak at a press conference.

Explainer

What does Hamas' move to dissolve its Gaza government mean?

Hamas has agreed to hand civilian administration over to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, but the committee is not yet in Gaza and may not deploy until Hamas’ disarmament is resolved.

Joint List Party leader Ayman Odeh attends a meeting on April 5, 2021 in Jerusalem, Israel.

Interview

Ayman Odeh says Arab parties could back Bennett or Eisenkot to block Netanyahu

In an interview with Al-Monitor, head of the Arab-Israeli Hadash-Ta'al Knesset faction, Ayman Odeh, said his party is prepared to make difficult decisions to topple Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government.

Ayman Odeh

Head of the Knesset's Hadash-Ta'al faction

Latest News

Who is Melat Kiros, the pro-Palestinian who unseated a longtime Democrat?

Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images

Amnesty International accuses Israel of state-led ethnic cleansing in West Bank

Israeli security forces attempt to disperse Palestinians who had gathered to protest the reported burning of land by Israeli settlers in the Palestinian village of Idna, west of Hebron in the occupied West Bank, on June 5, 2026.

Ireland bans hard-line Israeli ministers Ben-Gvir, Smotrich: What to know

Israeli policemen surround Israeli Minister of National Security and far-right politician Itamar Ben-Gvir as he arrives outside the Damascus Gate of the walled Old City of Jerusalem on May 26, 2025, during a flag march for Jerusalem Day, commemorating the Israeli army's 1967 capture of the city's eastern sector during the Arab-Israeli war.

Record Israeli arms exports highlight global rush for air defense

People stand in front of the Arrow 3 shield system during an event of the German Air Force to declare the Initial Operating Capability for the Arrow Weapon System for Germany at the Annaburger Heide Air Base in Schoenewalde / Holzdorf, eastern Germany, on Dec. 3, 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

European countries slam Israel over planned settlement expansion

The foreign ministries of France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy and Spain called for an immediate halt to settlement construction in the West Bank.

Saudi FM wants focus on Israeli-Palestinian talks over 'eventual normalization'

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud said the focus of Palestinian-Israeli peace efforts should be on bringing the two sides back to the negotiating table.

Palestinians holding off policy change until Nov. 3

It seems the Palestinian government is holding off on a decision accepting the Israeli deducted taxes and customs amid European pressure.

Palestinian Bedouin schoolchildren plattend a course in their classroom on October 21, 2018, in the Palestinian Bedouin village of Khan al-Ahmar, east of Jerusalem, in the occupied West Bank. - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has frozen plans to demolish a strategically located Bedouin village in the occupied West Bank that has drawn the world's attention, his office said on October 21. "The intention is to give a chance to the negotiations and the offers we received from different bodies, includi

Bedouin students fear losing their school in Area C

Israel prepares to demolish a newly constructed school in a Bedouin community near Ramallah in a move that is set to deprive 50 children of their right to education.

A member of the Syrian pro-government forces rides a bicycle through a damaged street in the Yarmuk Palestinian refugee camp on the southern outskirts of the capital Damascus on May 22, 2018. - The government seized earlier in the week the Yarmuk Palestinian camp and adjacent neighbourhoods of Tadamun and Hajar al-Aswad from the Islamic State (IS) group , putting Damascus fully under its control for the first time since 2012. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP) / The erroneous mention[s] appearing in the metadat

Palestinians displaced from Syria's Yarmouk camp to finally go home

The camp had been the focus of fighting and seizure by Islamic State and Syrian government forces.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas heads the Palestinian leadership meeting at his headquarters, in the West Bank city of Ramallah, during the COVID-19 pandemic on May 7, 2020. (Photo by Nasser Nasser / POOL / AFP) (Photo by NASSER NASSER/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Saudi prince rattles Palestinian leaders in televised critique

Former Saudi Ambassador to the United States Bandar Bin Sultan called for a new Palestinian leadership in the first two parts of an interview whose final portion has yet to air.

RAMADI, IRAQ - SEPTEMBER 06: U.S. ambassador Ryan Crocker speaks to tribal leaders during a key development meeting between Iraqi and American government officials and Sunni sheikhs September 6, 2007 in Ramadi, Anbar Province, Iraq. Crocker speaks fluent Arabic. He and commanding General David Petraeus are due to give a report to Congress next week on the state of the war in Iraq. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)

The Takeaway: US should keep embassy open in Iraq despite risk, says Ryan Crocker

Former ambassador to Iraq says US needs ‘strategic patience’ in support of prime minister; Netanyahu under siege over COVID; Palestinians ready for international conference after US elections, even if Trump wins; Hamas counting on Iran and Sudan.

Palestinians ready to talk peace after US presidential election, says top Abbas adviser

Majdi Khaldi, senior diplomatic adviser to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, says the Palestinians are ready for an international peace conference in early 2021, noting that a Biden administration would be "more committed to international law."

Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh (C) meets with Egyptian Cleric and chairman of the International Union of Muslim Scholars Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi (L) and former Sudanese president Abdel Rahman Swar Al Dahab (R) after their arrival in Gaza City on May 9, 2013. Al-Qaradawi arrived on May 8, 2013 for his first visit to Gaza Strip with a delegation of Muslim scholars. AFP PHOTO /MOHAMMED ABED (Photo credit should read MOHAMMED ABED/AFP via Getty Images)

Hamas leader: 'Sudan has never failed us'

Hamas is investing in Iranian support as it scrambles to reset its strategy as a result of the latest normalization agreements with Israel in the region.

RAMALLAH, -: Palestinians hold a banner showing late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat (L) and Fatah MP Mohammed Dahlan during a rally in the West Bank city of Ramallah 11 January 2007, to mark the 42nd anniversary of the Fatah movement. Thousands of flag-waving chanting supporters of Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas's Fatah party poured into central Ramallah for a second rally in less than a week aimed at staging a show of force agains the ruling Hamas movement. AFP PHOTO/PEDRO UGARTE (Photo credit shou

Palestinian Authority targets Dahlan’s supporters in West Bank

Supporters of the exiled Fatah leader Mohammed Dahlan appear to be taking the brunt of the Fatah leadership's anger, with rounds of political arrests.

GAZA CITY, GAZA STRIP - AUGUST 16: Members of the Palestinian police force of the Islamic group Hamas display automatic rifles allegedly seized from the Doghmush clan August 16, 2007 in Gaza City, Gaza. The Doghmush clan, linked along with the Army of Islam to the kidnapping of British journalist Alan Johnson, was involved in gun battles on August 14 that left two Hamas police officers dead. (Photo by Abid Katib/Getty Images)

Why Hamas can’t control arms proliferation in Gaza

Amid the uncontrollable proliferation of weapons in the Gaza Strip, human rights centers and institutions sounded the alarm, while Hamas seems unable to prevent citizens from obtaining arms.

Palestinian women mask-clad due to the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic wait with their children in a UN clinic to take Polio vaccine and Rota virus vaccines at Bureij refugee camp in the central of Gaza Strip on September 9, 2020. (Photo by MOHAMMED ABED / AFP) (Photo by MOHAMMED ABED/AFP via Getty Images)

Gaza women use social media to reveal domestic abuse

In light of the rise of domestic abuse cases in the Gaza Strip, women are resorting to social media to share their stories and try to protect their rights.