Latest in Palestine
The ICC prosecutor’s determination of jurisdiction relies on a controversial and legally problematic recognition of Palestinian statehood.
Earlier this fall, Congress enacted a new law with potentially dramatic implications for U.S. foreign policy toward the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Anti-Terrorism Clarification Act (ATCA) exposes foreign organizations that accept certain forms of U.S. foreign assistance to the possibility of terrorism-related civil litigation in U.S. federal courts.
Russian Bombs Fall in Idlib Ahead of Expected Offensive
Editor’s Note: It's always hard to be optimistic about anything involving the Israeli-Palestinian dispute today, and if anything, things are likely to get worse. Palestinian leadership is one particular problem. Nathan Stock of the Middle East Institute argues that succession after the death of 83-year-old Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is likely to be messy, with always-fractious Palestinian politics getting even more hostile and a two-state solution even further away.
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New Ceasefire Reached between Rebels and Regime in Southwest Syria
Turkey and Russia Bombard Syrian Towns
After More Than a Thousand Arrests, Protests Subside in Iran
Mahmoud Abbas will be remembered as a transformative figure in Palestinian politics. He was a driving force in reaching the Oslo Accords and in standing up the Palestinian Authority, and has overseen the tumultuous 13 years since the death of Fatah founder and PLO chairman Yasser Arafat. Abbas has always lacked the notoriety of Arafat, and despite being president of the Palestinian Authority for more than a decade and a key figure in the peace process for decades more, there’s never been an English-language biography of the man until now.
Relative Calm Returns to Temple Mount
In mid-December, I had the pleasure of joining a distinguished group of national security law scholars on an Academic Exchange to Israel and the West Bank. There is much to learn from such a trip and I will leave for another time most of it (for example, the fascinating discussion of how Israel's military targeting rules have been refined by technology).