Taking advantage of chaos, turbulence and political violence in much of the Arab world, Israel is quietly upping the ante at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, one of Islam's most sacred shrines.
Some Jewish religious authorities believe the 1400-year old (...)
The Palestinian Authority (PA) has warned that it may pass responsibility for the occupied Palestinian territories back to occupying power Israel if peace talks remain stalled.
An unnamed PA official said the Palestinians told American envoy Martin (...)
This week, Hamas commemorated the assassination by Israel of its founder and spiritual leader, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, with a massive rally in central Gaza attended by tens of thousands of supporters.
The wheelchair-bound quadriplegic Yassin was (...)
Muslim authorities in Israeli-occupied East Jerusalem have warned of dire consequences following recent Israeli measures aimed at imposing Israeli (Jewish) sovereignty at Haram Al-Sharif (the Noble Sanctuary) — the third holiest Muslim shrine — that (...)
Feeling cornered by peace efforts led by US Secretary of State John Kerry, Israel has been stepping up a “policy of provocation” against the Palestinians.
Israel hopes, pundits believe, that “rash acts or actions” by the Palestinians would help (...)
Taking advantage of the ongoing turmoil in the Arab world, Israel has introduced another potentially lethal hurdle to the already moribund peace process with the Palestinians by tabling a draft law in the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, which would (...)
A recent decision by the Israeli Supreme Court that asserted “Jewish nationality” over “Israeli nationality” has further alienated Israel's large Arab minority and rekindled the old question of whether it is possible to really reconcile parochial (...)
An Israeli occupation soldier was shot and killed in the southern Palestinian town of Al-Khalil (Hebron) Sunday, ostensibly at the hands of a Palestinian resistance fighter.
Another Israeli soldier was killed near the northern West Bank town of (...)
In a move that makes any prospective peace deal based on the two-state solution vision unworkable, Israel has decided to legalise four additional settlements in the occupied West Bank, including one a few blocs away from the heart of Ramallah, the (...)
Palestinian political and religious leaders have issued a stern warning to Israel against “tampering with the status quo at the Haram Al-Sharif [Noble Sanctuary] in East Jerusalem,” saying incessant Israeli efforts to arrogate “prayer rights” for (...)
In what appeared to be a game-changing act on Israel's part, Israeli warplanes launched an air strike in the Syrian capital, Damascus, Sunday. The Syrian government said Israeli fighter jets fired air-to-ground missiles at a research centre in a (...)
Former Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert has lambasted the government of Binyamin Netanyahu, accusing him of displaying only disingenuous concern for peace with the Palestinians and deliberately inflating the “Iranian danger”.
Speaking before a (...)
A new major US arms deal with Israel is intended to further enhance the Hebrew state's ability to strike Iran, even without direct American operational involvement. The multi-billion dollar package include anti-radiation missiles designed to take (...)
The bad chemistry and lack of concordance between Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas and his prime minister, Salam Fayyad, culminated this week with the resignation of the latter.
The resignation, which was accepted by Abbas, was (...)
Occupied Palestine has undergone a turbulent week following the death in an Israeli jail of Palestinian prisoner Maysara Abu Hamdiyeh. Palestinian officials accused Israel of withholding badly needed medical care from the Hebron inmate who was (...)
Palestinians in Israel proper and the occupied territories this week marked Land Day, which commemorates the murder by Israeli troops of six Palestinians in the Arab Israeli town of Sakhnin in 1976.
The six young men were trying to stop Israeli (...)
Prospects for reviving the moribund Middle East peace process look dim following President Obama's recent visit to the region. The visit, say commentators, achieved very little in terms of tackling some of the fundamental issues of the (...)
Both Palestinians and Israelis are expecting little from President Obama's visit to Israel-Palestine next week, with pundits on both sides arguing that realities on the ground are far beyond his ability to make a breakthrough in the decades-old (...)
Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is facing difficulties trying to form a new durable government following indecisive 22 January elections that saw a clear split in Israeli voter preferences between rightwing and extreme rightwing parties, (...)
Tension continues to flare all over the occupied Palestinian territories following the untimely death in an Israeli jail of Arafat Jaradat earlier this week.
Jaradat, 30, died ostensibly as a result of intensive physical torture and was laid to rest (...)
While the Obama administration is pressing both Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA) to resume stalled peace talks, officials and spokespersons from both sides see slim chances for a successful return to a peace process many observers say is (...)
President Obama's upcoming visit to Israel-Palestine is being termed a “last chance visit” to revive the moribund peace process and save the two-state solution from looming demise.
Israel has already pre-empted the visit by announcing plans to build (...)
In their seemingly endless struggle against Israel's colonialist occupation, Palestinians are increasingly resorting to novel and generally non-violent methods of resistance against harsh Israeli army tactics.
This week, Palestinian activists from (...)
Several European countries have warned Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu that maintaining the status quo in the West Bank is unacceptable and untenable and could lead to unforeseen ramifications for the entire region, already buffeted by (...)
More than 5.5 million Israelis will cast their votes Tuesday in what is widely viewed as a pivotal election that could decide the final outcome of the troubled peace process between Israel and the Palestinians.
Most opinion polls forecast a (...)