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

Palestine cover image

Palestine

July 27, 2026

Al Bīrah 2:55 pm

29°C

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

A rainbow appears across the sky as internally displaced Palestinians who fled the Israeli military bombardment and incursion into the northern Gaza Strip shelter in makeshift tents.

UN estimates 43,000 Gaza housing units wiped out, 80% of population displaced

As Hamas and Israel appeared to maintain the cease-fire for the fourth day, Palestinians rushed to secure aid and check damages to their homes.

Hisham Awartani, Kinnan Abdel Hamid and Tahseen Ahmed, who were shot in Burlington on Saturday.Credit...Awartani Family,

Who are the 3 Palestinian students shot in Vermont as hate crimes spike?

The shooting occurred during a time of heightened bigotry toward Arabs, Muslims and Jews amid the Israel-Hamas war and follows a string of similarly violent incidents.

A child carries a bag of humanitarian aid on his back as another uses a bicycle, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on November 26, 2023.

Qatar announces two-day Gaza truce extension

Hamas and Israel will pause their fighting for two additional days to allow the release of more hostages and the delivery of more aid into the Gaza Strip, Qatar announced on Monday.

Members of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) work at a staging area near the border of Gaza as a four day cease fire between Israel and members of Hamas holds for the release of prisoners and hostages on Nov. 27, 2023 outside of the city of Sedero in Tel Aviv, Israel.

Day 52 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Monday, Nov. 27

Palestinians walk amid the rubble of destroyed buildings in Gaza City on the northern Gaza strip following weeks of Israeli bombardment, as a four-day ceasefire took effect on Nov. 24, 2023.

Day 51 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Sunday, Nov. 26

Zaid Abdulnasser

As Germany expands anti-Hamas raids, a Palestinian activist fights against deportation

Caught in a web of geopolitics, migration policy and Germany’s growing attempts to contend with pro-Palestinian speech, Zaid Abdulnasser is fighting a battle to avoid deportation from his new home.

Friends and relatives of Palestinian prisoners that were released from the Israeli Ofer military facility in exchange for hostages freed by Hamas in Gaza, react as they are paraded in Baytunia in the occupied West Bank on November 24, 2023. After 48 days of gunfire and bombardment that claimed thousands of lives, the first hostages to be released under a truce deal between Israel and Hamas were handed over on November 24, both sides said, nearly seven weeks after they were seized. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH

Day 50 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Saturday, Nov. 25

Gaza water

Life in displacement in Gaza: in search for safety, fuel, drinkable water

Amid shortages of drinking water, displaced women face a daily struggle to secure drinking water for their children.

Turkish football supporters hold banners reading "There is a genocide in Gaza" and "Children killer Israel" during a demonstration to demand a stop to the bombings in Gaza in front of the Israeli consulate in Istanbul, on November 18, 2023 amid ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip. (Photo by YASIN AKGUL / AFP) (Photo by YASIN AKGUL/AFP via Getty Images)

Why is Turkey securing trade with Israel as Erdogan cheers on Hamas?

The Turkish president may be the loudest leader speaking up for the Palestinians, but he has paid no heed to calls for sanctions that could really bite Israel.

Border crossing

39 Palestinian prisoners freed under Hamas-Israel deal

By agreement, 150 Palestinians are expected to be released from Israeli jails, while 50 hostages held by Hamas will be turned over during a four-day cease-fire in Gaza.

Rafah border crossing 1

Day 49 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Friday, Nov. 24

A man walks by photos of hostages held in the Gaza Strip at in the Museum of Modern Art, Tel Aviv, Israel, Nov. 22, 2023.

Qatar says Hamas-Israel temporary cease-fire to begin Friday morning

The breakthrough agreement, which was delayed by a day, will see the release of 50 hostages held captive by Hamas in exchange for a four-day truce in Gaza.