[This is a roundup of news articles and other materials circulating on Palestine and reflects a wide variety of opinions. It does not reflect the views of the Palestine Page co-editors or of Jadaliyya. You may send your own recommendations for inclusion in each roundup to Palestine@jadaliyya.com.]
The Occupation Forces
Israeli Forces Attack Final Round of Weekly Protests in Gaza The protest organizers announced on Thursday that the rallies would be suspended until March 2020, after which it would be held on a monthly basis. Palestinian media outlets reported that the Israeli Forces shot and injured protesters in the east of Jabalia and the east of Khan Yunis on Friday.
Report: In 2019 Israel Arrested Over 5,500 Palestinians, Including 889 Children In 2019, Israeli Occupation Forces arrested over 5,500 Palestinians from the occupied Palestinian territories; among them were 889 children and at least 128 women. The report was issued by the Palestinian Prisoners’ Society, Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, and Prisoners’ Affairs Commission.
Domestic Policy
Israel: Netanyahu to Seek Parliamentary Immunity Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday he would seek parliamentary immunity from prosecution in the three corruption cases he faces, a move that could delay criminal proceedings against him for months. A trial cannot begin once an immunity request is made, and Netanyahu announced the politically risky move in a speech on live television just four hours before a deadline for an application was to expire.
Israel: Party Vote Shows Likud Unwilling to Give Up on Netanyahu Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's landslide victory in Thursday's party vote has proven that the Likud will not be giving up on its longtime leader and longest-serving prime minister, analysts have said.
Elections Are a Must, But not at Any Price: Presidential Spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesman for President Mahmoud Abbas, said today that the president and the leadership are determined to hold legislative and presidential elections as soon as possible, but without Jerusalem. The Palestinian Authority has asked Israel for permission to hold elections in Jerusalem, but this permission has not been forthcoming.
Imprisoned Barghouthi to Run in Palestine Presidential Election Imprisoned senior Fatah leader, Marwan Barghouti, will run against the incumbent Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the country’s upcoming presidential election. Citing local opinion polls, member of Fatah’s Revolutionary Council Hatem Abdel Qader pointed out that Barghouthi was “Fatah’s favorite candidate” if Abbas decided not to run for another term.
Foreign Policy
Al-Azzeh: Civil Society Institutions Reject Conditioned Funding By EU The European Union and other donor institutions are stipulating the signing of the so-called anti-terrorism clauses in order to receive funding. Palestinian civil society organizations announced their absolute rejection of politically conditioned funding, according to a new resolution by the European Union, even if this leads to the collapse of institutions.
Netanyahu: Israel Will Soon Normalize Ties, Sign Peace with Arab States Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has suggested that normalization and formal peace agreements will be made with several Arab states, last night during at a Likud event in Tel Aviv.
Netanyahu’s Son Wants British Diplomats ‘kicked out’ of Israel The son of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hopes that British diplomats will soon be “kicked out” of Israel in response to a tweet by British consulate staff referring to the West Bank and Gaza Strip as “occupied.”
Settlers and Illegal Settlements
Israeli Settlers Attack Palestinian Commuters in West Bank, Injury And Damage Reported Jewish settlers on December 31 attacked with stones Palestinian vehicles traveling on roads in the north of the West Bank causing injury to people and damage to several cars, according to a Palestinian official. Reportedly, twenty-five vehicles were damaged, and several people sustained injuries.
Israel to Expand Colonization of Hebron Shuhada Street is now the site of a new settlement plan proposed by Israeli defense minister Naftali Bennett, where he intends to construct Jewish-only residential units. The Hebron settlement building proposal is slated to double the number of Israeli settlers in the city.
Law
Foreign Ministry Condemns Israeli Ruling to Grant Early Release to Mass Murderer The Ministry slammed the Israeli court’s ruling deciding that Ami Popper, who was convicted for the killing of seven Palestinians and wounding sixteen others in Rishon Lezion on May 20, 1990, was not a terrorist and granting him early release.
Israeli Supreme Court Looking into Netanyahu’s Eligibility to Form Government On Tuesday morning, the Israeli Supreme Court opened the special session to consider the petition against the eligibility of Benjamin Netanyahu, the interim Israeli Prime Minister, in forming a government. The petition was submitted by nearly seventy Israeli personalities, including university professors, and technology and security workers, who were seeking to prevent Netanyahu from forming the government.
Prisoner Zahran Enters 100th Day of Hunger Strike Prisoner Ahmed Zahran, forty-two years, from the town of Deir Abu Mishaal, entered his one hundredth day of hunger strike, in protest against administrative detention, as he faces serious health conditions in the Ramleh prison clinic.
Bensouda: No Charges Against Israelis Nor Palestinians Yet Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court said that no charges have been filed against any Israeli or Palestinian, and the investigation has not yet been opened.
Eldest Prisoner Says He Can’t Withstand Detention Conditions Anymore eighty-year-old Fo’ad Shobaki, the eldest Palestinian prisoner in Israeli jails, has told his attorney that he can no longer withstand the difficult health conditions he’s experiencing.
Palestinian Minor Prisoners in Israel Jails Tortured, Humiliated, NGO Reveals Palestinian Prisoners’ Commission has documented witnesses of Palestinian minor prisoners inside Israeli jails stating that they had been tortured and humiliated when they were arrested and during their investigations, Safa Press Agency reported.
Environment, Economy, and Other
Over 13 million Palestinians in the World By End of 2019 Dr. Ola Awad, Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics President said that the projected number of Palestinians in the world is 13.350 million by the end of 2019. More than one third are living in the Gaza Strip.
Sheldon Adelson’s ‘Israel Hayom’ Incites Cyber Attacks Against the ICC In an article published in Israel Hayom, Diplomatic Correspondent Ariel Kahana wrote: “…perhaps Bensouda should be put in the position of having to explain to her staff why their computers crashed one morning or where their archives vanished.”
Why Child Labor is Common in Gaza The United Nation monitoring group OCHA has stated that child labor is a “commonly used mechanism to alleviate poverty” in Gaza. In addition to the effect of Israeli bombings, Gaza has been hurt by cuts to public sector wages imposed by the Palestinian Authority as well as the funding cuts to UNRWA by the US.
Over 19 Palestinian Families Live in Caves to Escape Israel Oppression More than nineteen Palestinian families have taken refuge in caves in the Al-Mufqara village near Hebron to escape Israeli aggression and home demolitions. A total of approximately one hundred Palestinians living in the caves lack access to water, electricity, schools and roads. They rely on rainwater and harvest their own food, many works as shepherds.