Global Outlook

  Since Israel ‘s war with Hamas began more than two years ago, Israel has erected nearly 1,000 barriers in cities and towns in the occupied West Bank, further stifling movement for Palestinians and hindering daily lives, a local government body says. While Israel’s military has long imposed movement and access constraints after capturing the West Bank in the 1967 Mideast war, the number of new barriers is unprecedented, residents say. According to the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, an official Palestinian governmental body, 916 gates, barriers and walls have been installed since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on Israel. Israeli military raids throughout the West Bank have also increased, with Palestinians killed or detained. Israel says it is trying to root out militancy. Among the new barriers are metal gates stationed at many village and town entrances and between cities, blocking access in and out. Sometimes the Israeli military is stationed at them. Palestinian...

  “Israel won’t do anything in the West Bank, don’t be afraid,” Donald Trump said at the White House in response to a French reporter’s question whether the Knesset vote for sovereignty over that territory was a challenge to him. The question arises from the fact that the right-wing rivals of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have narrowly passed a West Bank annexation bill in the first parliamentary reading, prompting criticism from the US, while the allies promote a peace plan for Gaza whose regional support depends on the recognition of Palestinian territorial claims. “Personally, I consider it an insult,” said US Vice-President J.D. Vance, at the end of his visit to Israel, in response to Wednesday’s vote in the Knesset, with 25 votes in favour and 24 against. Last month, Trump declared that he would not allow Israel to annex the West Bank, an area where, along with the Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem, Palestinians want to establish an independent state. “Don’t worry abou...

  On a Friday in the occupied West Bank, the world lost a dedicated and compassionate activist, Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, who was fatally shot during a protest against illegal Israeli settlements. This tragedy took place on Mount Sbeih in Beita, south of Nablus, an area known for its long-standing conflict and demonstrations. Eygi, only 26 years old, had been protesting the ongoing Israeli settler violence when Israeli forces opened fire, using live ammunition, stun grenades, and tear gas to disperse the demonstrators. Eygi sustained a serious head injury during the violent crackdown and was rushed to Rafidia Hospital in Nablus. Despite efforts to save her, she died soon after arrival. Fouad Nafaa, the head of Rafidia Hospital, confirmed, “We tried to perform a resuscitation operation on her, but unfortunately, she died.” Eygi’s death shocked many, and those present at the protest described the horrific moment. Jonathan Pollak, a witness, recalled finding her “lying on the ground beneath ...