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☆ Israel's finance minister defends settlement funds in budget row
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich attends an inauguration event for Israel's new light rail line for the Tel Aviv metropolitan area, in Petah Tikva, Israel, August 17, 2023. On Sunday, centrist Minister Benny Gantz demanded that Netanyahu remove all political payouts from the new budget, saying they will harm the war effort. Those include so-called "coalition funds" intended for settlements in the occupied West Bank and for the ultra-Orthodox Jewish education system. The row over devoting funds to settlements comes at a sensitive moment for Israel as it seeks to mobilize international support for the war in Gaza. Israel's central bank and hundreds of economists have also called on the government to scrap funds not vital to financing the war.

Persons: Bezalel Smotrich, Amir Cohen, Benjamin Netanyahu's, Benny Gantz, Netanyahu, Smotrich, Josep Borrell, Gantz's, Mahmoud Abbas, Gantz, Maayan Lubell, Steven Scheer, Ari Rabinovitch, Ali Sawafta, Nick Macfie Organizations: Tel, REUTERS, Rights, Israeli, West Bank, Jewish, Sunday, Thomson Locations: Tel Aviv, Petah Tikva, Israel, Gaza, United States, Jerusalem

The militants released 17 hostages, including 13 Israelis, while Israel freed 39 Palestinian prisoners. Hamas is to release at least 50 Israeli hostages, and Israel 150 Palestinian prisoners. A BITTERSWEET MOMENT FOR HOSTAGE FAMILIESShortly before midnight, Hamas released the second group of hostages, 13 Israelis and four Thais. The Israeli hostages freed on Saturday included seven children and six women, Netanyahu’s office announced. A kibbutz spokesperson said all the released hostages either had a family member killed in the Oct. 7 rampage or a loved one still in captivity in Gaza.

Persons: Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, Nurhan Awad, Israa Jaabis, Jaabis, ”, Fatah, Mahmoud Abbas, ___ Magdy, Tia Goldenberg Organizations: Hamas, Health Ministry, United Nations, Aid, Palestinian, Crescent, West Bank, Palestinian Prisoners ’ Club, Associated Press Locations: DEIR, Gaza, Israel, Qatar, Egypt, Tel Aviv, United States, Gaza City, Be’eri, Jerusalem, Palestine, Al, Cairo, israel

☆ Opinion | The Only Way Forward
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-25 | by ( The Editorial Board | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +11 min

This board has called many times for an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel, and we have called for mercy and reason in the current conflict. It is also noteworthy that the Palestinian Authority under Mr. Abbas has largely stayed clear of the Gaza eruption. Israel is the dominant power here, and in the current conflict, Israel will once again need to be first to move toward the establishment of a Palestinian state. Holding Israel’s leaders to account in no way lessens the responsibility that Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad bear for the present suffering in Gaza. Follow The New York Times Opinion section on Facebook, Twitter (@NYTopinion) and Instagram.

Persons: They’ve, —, Ehud Barak, Yasir Arafat, Barak’s, Ehud Olmert, Mahmoud Abbas, Yitzhak Rabin, Olmert’s, Benjamin Netanyahu’s, West Bank —, Biden, United Arab Emirates —, Barak, Olmert, Israel —, Abbas, Netanyahu, Israel, I’d, Netanyahu’s, Hamas, Rabin, Arafat, Okea Organizations: Palestinian Authority, West Bank, Palestinian, Hamas, Israel, United, Abraham Accords, Mr, Ilan University, Getty Images, New York, Facebook, Twitter Locations: Israel, Gaza, United States, Oslo Accords, Jerusalem, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Iran, Abraham, Indonesia, Palestinian

☆ Spain denounces 'indiscriminate' Gaza deaths, angering Israel
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Secretary-General of the Arab League Ahmed Aboul Gheit meets with Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Belgium's Prime Minister Alexander De Croo to discuss the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Cairo, Egypt November 24, 2023. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also weighed in, saying the two European leaders had failed to spotlight what he called crimes against humanity committed by Palestinian militants of Hamas. Hamas fighters burst into Israel from Gaza on Oct. 7 in an attack Israel says killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians. Israel has bombarded Gaza and sent in troops and tanks in retaliation, killing about 14,000 Gazans, around 40% of them children, according to Palestinian health authorities. On Thursday, Sanchez met Netanyahu and Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Israel Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.

Persons: Arab League Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Pedro Sanchez, Alexander De Croo, Mohamed Abdel, Sanchez, Eli Cohen, De, Benjamin Netanyahu, Netanyahu, Netanyahu's, Jose Manuel Albares, Albares, Isaac Herzog, Mahmoud Abbas, Inti Landauro, Ari Rabinovitch, Andrew Gray, Emma Pinedo, Charlie Devereux, William Maclean, Grant McCool Organizations: Arab League, Spain's, Belgium's, Hamas, REUTERS, Spanish, Belgian, Israel's, Palestinian, West Bank, Thomson Locations: Israel, Cairo, Egypt, Gaza, Rafah, Spain, Belgium, Spanish, Hamas, Ramallah, Belgian, Madrid, Jerusalem, Brussels

☆ Spanish PM floats peace conference idea in meeting with Israel's Netanyahu
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander de Croo pose during a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem, November 23, 2023. "Today, more than ever, we need to bring back a serious and credible prospect for peace," Sanchez said after talks with Netanyahu. Sanchez said he and unspecified colleagues had proposed holding an international peace conference with the parties as soon as possible. "It is in Israel's interest to work for peace, and today, peace means the establishment of a viable Palestinian state that includes the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, according to the U.N. resolutions," he said. U.S. officials have said the time is not right to try to resume peace talks given the protracted intransigence of both sides.

Persons: Pedro Sanchez, Alexander de Croo, Benjamin Netanyahu, Borja Puig de la, Sanchez, Isaac Herzog, Mahmoud Abbas, Netanyahu, Alexander De Croo, De Croo, David Latona, Marine Strauss, Aislinn Laing, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: Spanish, Belgian, Israeli, Reuters Acquire, Rights, Hamas, West Bank, European Union, Arab League, Organisation for Islamic Cooperation, West, of, Union, Palestinian Authority, Jerusalem, Thomson Locations: Jerusalem, Moncloa, Handout, Rights MADRID, U.S, Israel, Palestinian, Ramallah, Egypt, West Bank, Gaza, East Jerusalem, Barcelona, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Madrid, Oslo, Brussels

☆ Israel–Hamas war: The hostage deal and ceasefire explained
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

Israeli tanks take position near a border with Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, November 22, 2023. The pause will be extended by a day for each additional batch of 10 hostages released, Israel said in a statement. Qatar's chief negotiator in ceasefire talks, Minister of State at the Foreign Ministry Mohammed Al-Khulaifi, said that under the deal there would be "no attack whatsoever. The deal was announced 46 days after the start of the war, one of the most fierce conflicts to erupt between the two sides. The initial negotiations for a deal between Israel and Hamas, both sworn enemies, began within days of the Oct. 7 attack but progress was slow.

Persons: Amir Cohen, Israel, Salah al, Foreign Ministry Mohammed Al, Mahmoud Abbas, Joe Biden, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's, Edmund Blair, Howard Goller Organizations: Palestinian, Hamas, REUTERS, State, Foreign Ministry, Committee, WHO, U.S, Palestinian Prisoners Society, West Bank and, Palestinian Authority, Qatar, Qatari, United, Thomson Locations: Gaza, Israel, Qatar, Egypt, Gaza ., Argentina, Britain, Chile, France, Germany, Portugal, Spain, Thailand, U.S, West Bank and Jerusalem, Doha, United States, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Israeli, Cairo

☆ Palestinian ex-prisoner hopes his son will also be freed in Israel swap
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( Yosri Aljamal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

HEBRON, West Bank, Nov 22 (Reuters) - For Yusif Abu Maria, the looming Gaza hostage deal is especially personal. Not only is his son on a list of candidates of imprisoned Palestinians to be freed by Israel: It would be a replay of Abu Maria's own release from jail almost 20 years ago. In return, 150 female inmates or teenaged males will be released from Israeli security prisons. Many Israelis see the Palestinian prisoners as dangerous foes whose freedom would raise risks of new and widespread violence. "I feel just like any mother who has a wounded son in jail would," said Yusif's wife, Fida.

Persons: Abu Maria, Abu Maria's, Ubay Abu Maria, Israel, Ubay's, I've, Yusif, Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah, Uday, Dan Williams, Nick Macfie Organizations: West Bank, Gaza, Qatari, Israel's, Ubay, Reuters, Islamic, Prisons Service, Thomson Locations: HEBRON, West, Israel, Gaza, Lebanese

☆ Biden says Palestinian Authority should ultimately govern Gaza and West Bank
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Julia Nikhinson Acquire Licensing RightsWASHINGTON, Nov 18 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden said on Saturday the Palestinian Authority should ultimately govern the Gaza Strip and the West Bank following the Israel-Hamas war. "As we strive for peace, Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited under a single governance structure, ultimately under a revitalized Palestinian Authority, as we all work toward a two-state solution," Biden said in an opinion article in the Washington Post. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took issue with Biden's plan for the Palestinian Authority to govern Gaza. The Palestinian Authority used to run both the West Bank and Gaza but was ousted from the latter in 2007 after a brief civil war with Hamas. Biden also said the United States is prepared to issue visa bans against "extremists" attacking civilians in the West Bank.

Persons: Joe Biden disembarks, Julia Nikhinson, Joe Biden, Biden, Benjamin Netanyahu, we’ve, Netanyahu, Mahmoud Abbas, Israel, Steve Holland, Eric Beech, Emily Rose, Doina Chiacu, Daniel Wallis Organizations: Delaware Air National Guard Base, REUTERS, Rights, Palestinian Authority, West Bank, Washington Post, Hamas, West Bank and, Palestine TV, The West Bank, Thomson Locations: Marine, Wilmington, New Castle , Delaware, U.S, Gaza, Israel, Washington, United States, Tel Aviv, West Bank and Jerusalem

There's a lot of military people here, I just don't understand how this objective can be realised," Ayman Safadi said at the annual IISS Manama Dialogue security conference in Bahrain. Israel vowed to wipe out Hamas since its deadly Oct. 7 cross-border rampage into nearby Israeli communities. And we need to end that today, not tomorrow," said Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan. "Hamas cannot be in control of Gaza any longer," Borrell told the Manama Dialogue, an annual conference on foreign and security policy. The PA is deeply unpopular among Palestinians, perceived largely as a corrupt security subcontractor for Israel, and Israel is now under a hardline religious-nationalist government.

Persons: Ayman Safadi, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, Brett McGurk, Joe Biden's, Prince Turki al, Faisal, Josep Borrell, Borrell, Mahmoud Abbas, Abbas, Fatah, Anwar Gargash, Enas Alashray, Michael Georgy, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: UAE, Hamas, Saudi Foreign, Israel, WHO, United Nations, Palestinian Authority, West Bank, European Union, West Bank ., United Arab Emirates, Thomson Locations: Israel, Gaza Gaza, Bahrain, Gaza, MANAMA, Palestinian, Manama, Gaza City, Regional, Saudi Arabia, GAZA, Saudi, U.S, UAE, Cairo

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at the weekend that the PA in its current form should not take charge of Gaza. In the wake of Netanyahu's comments, Israeli officials have insisted that Israel does not intend to occupy the Gaza Strip. Dahlan has the backing of the influential United Arab Emirates to lead a post-war administration in Gaza, according to diplomats and Arab officials. So far, the U.S. and its allies have not seen any clear roadmap from Israel for its exit strategy from Gaza beyond the declared aim of eradicating Hamas, diplomats say. Not since the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003 has there been such widespread concern about military action raging across the Middle East, according to Arab officials and diplomats.

Persons: Israel tightens, Gaza's, Mahmoud Abbas, Fatah, Benjamin Netanyahu, Mohammed Dahlan, Israel, Dahlan, Joe Biden, Netanyahu, Gaza –, –, Abu Mohammad, We're, Biden, Jonathan Panikoff, government's, Biden's, Antony Blinken, Blinken, Abbas –, Abbas, Mohammad Shtayyeh, Abu Dhabi, Marwan Barghouti, Washington, Joost R, John Kirby, Nidal al, Humeyra Pamuk, Matt Spetalnick, Andrew Mills, James Mackenzie, Crispian Balmer, John Irish, Aidan Lewis, Alexander Cornwell, Samia Nakhoul, Daniel Flynn Organizations: Palestinian, Hamas, Israel Defense Forces, REUTERS, Authority, Palestinian Authority, West Bank, United, Israel, U.S, policymaking, Reuters, Atlantic Council, Gaza, Western, Israel ., UAE, North Africa, Crisis, House, Thomson Locations: Gaza, Israel, Gaza Israel, Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestinian, U.S, United States, Washington, Hamas, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, America, Egypt, Jordan, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Tokyo, Oslo, European, technocrats, United Nations, Middle East, Iran, GAZA, Doha, Jerusalem, Paris, Cairo, Dubai

☆ Israel is tightening its control of northern Gaza. But there is no clear post-war strategy in sight
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Nadeen Ebrahim | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Abu Dhabi, UAE CNN —The Israeli military is tightening its grip on northern Gaza, as its war on the Hamas militant group is showing no signs of abating. Almost six weeks into the conflict, however, Israel is yet to offer a clear post-war plan for the territory. The Israeli military raided Gaza’s largest hospital, Al-Shifa, on Wednesday after claiming that Hamas had built a command center beneath the sprawling medical complex. The United States has warned against Israel re-occupying Gaza, and has stressed a future role there for the Palestinian Authority (PA). Video Ad Feedback Netanyahu appeared to rule out giving the Palestinian Authority control of post-war Gaza.

Persons: Yoav Gallant, Israel, Khan Younis, Fatima Shbair, ” Frank Lowenstein, Barack Obama, “, ” Lowenstein, Benjamin Netanyahu, Netanyahu, “ Israel, ”, Daniel Levy, CNN’s Dana Bash, Levy, I’m, ” Levy, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, CNN Kobi Michael, Mahmoud Abbas, –, Abbas, Fadel Senna, Lina Khatib, ” Khatib, CNN’s Becky Anderson, Michael of INSS, Lowenstein Organizations: UAE CNN, Israeli, Israel Defense Forces, Hamas, Al, Palestinian, CNN, United Nations Office, Humanitarian Affairs, of Housing, United, Palestinian Authority, Palestinian Health Ministry, West Bank, Institute for National Security Studies, Palestinian Center, Policy, Research, West Bank . Lowenstein, Regional, Getty, United Arab Emirates, SOAS, East Institute, PLO, Palestine Liberation Organization, Israel’s Ministry, Strategic Affairs, UN Conference, Trade, Development, UNCTAD, UN, Programme, Palestine Economic Policy Research Institute, UNDP, UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, Israel Locations: Abu Dhabi, UAE, Gaza, Israel, Gaza City, Gaza’s, Al, Khan, “, London, New York, United States, Ramallah, Tel Aviv, ”, Israeli, AFP, Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab, Palestinian, Palestine

☆ Opinion: Why Israel’s divide-and-rule approach towards Palestinians backfired so spectacularly
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Opinion Hussein Ibish | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

Why Ending the Occupation and Peace with Israel is Still the Palestinian National Goal.” The views expressed in this commentary are his own. Hamas’ unwavering commitment to armed struggle and violence allowed the Israeli right to paint the entire Palestinian national movement as hopelessly extreme. He reportedly said that this was part of Israel’s strategy — to isolate the Palestinians in Gaza from the Palestinians in the West Bank. But the old, infirm and chain-smoking politician, who at least has time and again proven his unwavering rejection of violence as a Palestinian national strategy, represents exactly this trend among Palestinians. The Biden administration appears to understand the challenge in theory, but how much they can or will do to implement such a revised policy towards the Palestinian political scene is uncertain at best.

Persons: Hussein Ibish, Read, Shimon Peres, Yitzhak Rabin, Bill Clinton, Yasser Arafat, DAVID AKE, Ariel Sharon, Benjamin Netanyahu, Mahmoud Abbas, Fatah, Netanyahu, Hussein, Abbas, Christy Bowe, Israel’s, Yasser Arafat’s, it’s, It’s, Biden, Israel —, Abbas — Organizations: Gulf States Institute, CNN, West Bank, Fatah, Palestinian Authority, Palestine Liberation Organization, PLO, Hamas, Palestinian, Muslim, White, AFP, Getty, UN, Israel, White House, ImageCatcher Locations: Washington, Israel, Gaza, Oslo Accords, AFP, Oslo, Israeli, Palestinian, Jerusalem, Middle, Abbas

☆ Israel-Hamas War U.S. and Israel Strike Militias Tied to Iran in Reminder of Risks in Mideast
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-13 | by ( Andrés R. Martínez | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +6 min

“We need to see the following two things,” Mr. Netanyahu told NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “Gaza has to be demilitarized and Gaza has to be de-radicalized. He said that Israel must maintain security control there “for as long as necessary” and have the ability to enter Gaza at will to deal with perceived threats there. More than 11,000 people have been killed in Gaza since Oct. 7, according to Gazan health officials. “The massacre of Oct. 7 proved once and for all that in every place that Israel does not have security control, terrorism entrenches itself,” Mr. Netanyahu said on Saturday. Mr. Netanyahu, a conservative and Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, has been prosecuting the war amid plummeting approval ratings.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel, Mr, Netanyahu, NBC’s “, ”, “, ” Mr, Netanyahu’s, Biden, Antony J, Blinken, António Guterres, CNN’s “ Fareed Zakaria, Israel’s, Mahmoud Abbas, forthrightly, Israel —, Abbas, ” Nabil Abu Rudeineh, Abu Rudeineh, Wafa Organizations: Israeli Army, Palestinian, Press, Palestinian Authority, Israeli, West Bank, United Nations, “, West Locations: Gaza, Israel, Palestinian, Qatar, Samaria, ”, West Bank, East Jerusalem

Mahmoud Abbas, leader of the Palestinian Authority, attending an emergency meeting in Riyadh. Photo: SAUDI PRESS AGENCY/AFP via Getty ImagesIsrael is diverging from the U.S. and Arab world on a postwar solution for Gaza, after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ruled out a role for the Palestinian Authority, which Washington and some Arab leaders prefer to take over from Hamas. Netanyahu, under pressure from his right-wing political base, said Saturday Israel wants a solution other than the Palestinian Authority, led by President Mahmoud Abbas . The Israeli leader didn’t put forward an alternative, saying only that Israel wants to avoid governing Gaza and needs to maintain security control over the strip after it defeats Hamas, which Netanyahu has sworn to do.

Persons: Mahmoud Abbas, Benjamin Netanyahu, Netanyahu, Israel, didn’t Organizations: Palestinian Authority, Photo, SAUDI PRESS, Getty Images Israel Locations: Riyadh, U.S, Gaza, Washington

☆ Israel Says Palestinian Authority in Current Form Should Not Run Gaza
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-12 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

By Crispian BalmerJERUSALEM (Reuters) - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has thrown up more doubts about the future of the Gaza Strip, suggesting that the Palestinian Authority in its current form should not take charge of the coastal enclave. Israel has vowed to destroy Palestinian group Hamas, which governs Gaza, following its shock Oct. 7 cross-border assault, and has launched a full-scale invasion of the territory. Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesperson for Abbas, told Reuters the Israelis were seeking to perpetuate divisions between the two Palestinian territories -- the Israeli-occupied West Bank and Gaza. "Israeli attempts to separate Gaza from the West Bank will fail, and it will not be allowed, regardless of the pressures," he said. The PA used to run both the West Bank and Gaza, but got ousted from the latter in 2007 after a brief civil war with Hamas.

Persons: Crispian Balmer JERUSALEM, Benjamin Netanyahu, Antony J, Blinken, Mahmoud Abbas, Netanyahu, Israel, Abbas, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, Emily Rose, Ali Sawafta, William Maclean Organizations: Palestinian Authority, Hamas, West, Reuters, West Bank Locations: Gaza, Israel, Washington, West Bank, Jerusalem, Ramallah

☆ Netanyahu says he sees no role for the Palestinian Authority in Gaza, for now.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-12 | by ( Isabel Kershner | More About Isabel Kershner | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +6 min

“We need to see the following two things,” Mr. Netanyahu told NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “Gaza has to be demilitarized and Gaza has to be de-radicalized. His remarks appeared to be somewhat at odds with the Biden administration, which last week made it clear that there should be no Israeli “re-occupation” of Gaza. More than 11,000 people have been killed in Gaza since Oct. 7, according to Gazan health officials. “The massacre of Oct. 7 proved once and for all that in every place that Israel does not have security control, terrorism entrenches itself,” Mr. Netanyahu said on Saturday. Mr. Netanyahu, a conservative and Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, has been prosecuting the war amid plummeting approval ratings.

☆ Israel says Palestinian Authority in current form should not run Gaza
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-12 | by ( Crispian Balmer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Israel has vowed to destroy Palestinian group Hamas, which governs Gaza, after its shock Oct. 7 cross-border assault and has launched a full-scale invasion of the territory. Washington has said Israel cannot occupy the enclave after the war, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken last week saying that the Gaza administration had to be re-unified with the nearby West Bank, parts of which are run by the Palestinian Authority (PA). Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesperson for Abbas, told Reuters the Israelis were seeking to perpetuate divisions between the two Palestinian territories -- the Israeli-occupied West Bank and Gaza. "Israeli attempts to separate Gaza from the West Bank will fail, and it will not be allowed, regardless of the pressures," he told Reuters. The PA used to run both the West Bank and Gaza but was ousted from the latter in 2007 after a brief civil war with Hamas.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Yoav Gallant, Benny Gantz, Antony Blinken, Mahmoud Abbas, Netanyahu, Israel, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, Abbas, Emily Rose, Rami Ayyub, Ali, William Maclean, David Goodman Organizations: Rights, Palestinian Authority, Hamas, West, NBC News, Reuters, West Bank, Thomson Locations: Tel Aviv, Israel, ABIR, Gaza, Washington, West Bank, Jerusalem

CNN —Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi is in the Saudi capital Riyadh for a major summit on the Israel-Hamas war, where Arab leaders pressed for an end to the conflict. It marks the first trip by an Iranian leader to Saudi Arabia in 11 years after the two countries restored diplomatic relations in March. He shook hands with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), the heir to the Saudi throne and the country’s de facto ruler. A significant number of Arab leaders are attending the emergency gathering Saturday, titled the Joint Arab Islamic Extraordinary Summit. The summit is being hosted by Saudi Arabia in response to the “unprecedented circumstances in Gaza,” according to a statement released by the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Persons: Ebrahim Raisi, Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Raisi, ”, we’ve, “, Mahmoud Abbas, Hassan Nasrallah, Israel’s, Bashar al, Assad Organizations: CNN, Saudi Arabia’s Crown, Palestinian, –, Hamas, Arab, Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Arab League Locations: Saudi, Riyadh, Israel, Saudi Arabia, …, Al, Aqsa, ”, Gaza, United States, Washington, Palestine, Iran

☆ Palestinian Authority Could Play Gaza Role as Part of Wider Palestinian Solution -Abbas
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-10 | by ( Nov. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

RAMALLAH (Reuters) - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Friday the Palestinian Authority could play a role in administering the Gaza Strip, on condition that there was a full political solution that also encompassed the occupied West Bank. The United States has said that Palestinians should govern Gaza after the war but how that would work in practice remains open. The Palestinian Authority could be part of a wider political solution with an independent Palestinian state, Abbas said. Attempts to secure an agreement for a two state solution with an independent Palestinian state have been stalled for almost a decade after the last round of U.S.-brokered peace talks stalled in 2014. Although countries including the United States have continued to call for a two state solution, there have been no firm signs of any revival in the peace process.

Persons: Mahmoud Abbas, Abbas, Ali Sawafta, James Mackenzie, Clauda Tanios, Alison Williams, Grant McCool Organizations: Palestinian Authority, West Bank, Israeli, Hamas, United, Palestinian Locations: RAMALLAH, Gaza, United States, Israel, Palestine, East Jerusalem

☆ Israel does not seek to occupy Gaza, but 'credible force' needed -Netanyahu
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a press conference with defense minister Yoav Gallant and Cabinet minister Benny Gantz in the Kirya military base in Tel Aviv , Israel , 28 October 2023. Netanyahu's comments this week suggesting that Israel would be responsible for Gaza security indefinitely drew pushback from the United States, Israel's main ally. Speaking to U.S. television's Fox News on Thursday, Netanyahu said: "We don't seek to conquer Gaza, we don't seek to occupy Gaza, and we don't seek to govern Gaza." Netanyahu said a civilian government would need to take shape in Gaza but that Israel would make sure an attack like Oct. 7 does not happen again. Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh told PBS this week the PA would not return to Gaza "on the back of an Israeli tank".

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Yoav Gallant, Benny Gantz, Washington, Israel, Netanyahu, Mahmoud Abbas, Abbas, Mohammad Shtayyeh, Rami Ayyub, Grant McCool Organizations: Hamas, television's Fox, Palestinian Authority, West Bank, Palestinian, PBS, Thomson Locations: Tel Aviv, Israel, ABIR, Gaza, United States, deradicalized

☆ Palestinian Authority could play Gaza role as part of wider Palestinian solution -Abbas
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian Authority, meets with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in Amman, Jordan, Tuesday Oct. 17, 2023. Jacquelyn Martin/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsRAMALLAH, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Friday the Palestinian Authority could play a role in administering the Gaza Strip, on condition that there was a full political solution that also encompassed the occupied West Bank. The Palestinian Authority could be part of a wider political solution with an independent Palestinian state, Abbas said. Attempts to secure an agreement for a two state solution with an independent Palestinian state have been stalled for almost a decade after the last round of U.S.-brokered peace talks stalled in 2014. Abbas said there should be an international peace conference to work out specific timelines, backed by international guarantees.

Persons: Mahmoud Abbas, Antony Blinken, Jacquelyn Martin, Abbas, Israel, Ali Sawafta, James Mackenzie, Clauda Tanios, Alison Williams, Grant McCool Organizations: Palestinian, U.S, Palestinian Authority, West Bank, Israeli, Hamas, United, Thomson Locations: Amman, Jordan, RAMALLAH, Gaza, United States, Israel, Palestine, East Jerusalem

☆ US calls for limits on Israeli control of post-war Gaza
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( Humeyra Pamuk | Thomson Reuters | Humeyra Pamuk Is A Senior Foreign Policy Correspondent Based In Washington Dc. She Covers The U.S. State Department | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Now a month later, Washington has begun discussing with Israeli and Arab leaders a future for the Gaza Strip without Hamas rule. His comments appeared at odds with U.S. officials who say Israel does not want to administer Gaza post-Hamas. "(We) are not going to go to Gaza on an Israeli military tank," PA Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh told PBS this week. Since Oct. 7, more than 10,000 Palestinians have been killed in a relentless bombardment of the Gaza Strip - home to 2.3 million - by Israeli forces, say Palestinian health officials in Gaza. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday said "best-case scenario" would be a "hopefully re-invigorated" Palestinian Authority assuming some political control over Gaza.

Persons: Ronen, Benjamin Netanyahu's, Antony Blinken, Blinken, Netanyahu, we've, Israel, Mahmoud Abbas, Mohammad Shtayyeh, Abbas, Fatah, Biden, Antonio Guterres, John Kirby, Humeyra Pamuk, Rami Ayyub, Howard Goller Organizations: Palestinian, Hamas, REUTERS, Rights, West Bank, Palestinian Authority, ABC News, U.S, PBS, Thomson Locations: Israeli, Gaza, Israel, United States, Washington, Tokyo, Palestinian, GAZA, Palestine, U.N, Gaza .

☆ Blinken Lays Out Possible Endgame in Gaza Under Palestinian Authority
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Michael D. Shear | More About Michael D. Shear | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

But increasingly, the United States and Israel are showing signs that their interests are diverging. The remarks by Mr. Blinken on Wednesday reflect a deep anxiety on the part of Mr. Biden and his aides inside the White House as the conflict enters its second month. On Wednesday, Mr. Blinken said there must be “affirmative elements to get to a sustained peace.”“These must include the Palestinian people’s voices and aspirations at the center of post-crisis governance in Gaza,” he said. But restoring the Palestinian Authority — which administers parts of the West Bank — to power in Gaza would not be easy even if Israel managed to end Hamas’s rule. Mr. Biden has also come under pressure from some in the Democratic Party, which is deeply split on the conflict.

Persons: Antony J, Blinken, Biden, Mr, ”, Israel, Mahmoud Abbas, John F, Kirby, Benjamin Netanyahu Organizations: West Bank, Palestinian Authority, Hamas, National Security Council, CNN, White, Democratic Party, Democratic, Veterans Locations: Gaza, United, Israel, Tokyo, United States, Palestinian

By saying that Israel will maintain security control over Gaza “for an indefinite period,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu set off alarm bells in Washington and questions at home. The Biden administration, trying to manage severe criticism among Arab and European allies about the death toll in Gaza — now at more than 10,000 Gazan officials say — was quick to push back. That collaboration helps Mr. Abbas tamp down dissent in the West Bank, including from members of Hamas, while Israeli settlements continue to expand there. After the killing of so many Israelis by Hamas a month ago — about 1,400, officials say — Israel will want to ensure its own security so that such an invasion from Gaza can never happen again. Even then, it is highly unlikely, Israeli officials say, that Israel will ever completely trust any Palestinian or even international peacekeeping force to keep Israel safe.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Biden, —, “, Antony J, Blinken, Mahmoud, Abbas, Abbas tamp, Netanyahu Organizations: ”, West Bank, Palestinian Authority, Authority, Mr, Israel Locations: Israel, Gaza, Washington, Tokyo, Palestinian

Israeli troops have been battling Palestinian militants inside Gaza for over a week, and have succeeded in cutting the territory in half and encircling Gaza City. About 1,400 people in Israel have died, mostly civilians killed in the Oct. 7 incursion by Hamas that started the war. The military says a one-way corridor for residents of Gaza City and surrounding areas to flee south remains available. Residents in northern Gaza reported heavy battles overnight into Tuesday morning in the outskirts of Gaza City. Israel captured Gaza, the West Bank and east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war.

Persons: KHAN YOUNIS, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel, Netanyahu, Joe Biden's, Marwan Abdullah, ”, Mohamed Zaqout, Khan Younis, —, Mahmoud Abbas, Antony Blinken, Abbas, we’ve, ___ Magdy Organizations: Hamas, ABC News, White, United, Palestinian, United Nations, Health Ministry, Gaza, Associated Press, West Bank Locations: Gaza, Israel, Gaza City, Washington ,, Khan, Jerusalem, Egypt, rearming, Palestinian, Lebanon, Rafah, Cairo, ___, israel

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