Israel

By James Sunderland, University of Oxford | – The death in custody on May 2 of Khader Adnan, the first Palestinian to die of a hunger strike for more than 30 years, sparked mass protests in Gaza and an exchange of fire between Israel and armed Palestinian groups. It was later announced that a ceasefire […]

Authoritarianism

Neither Iran nor Israel Needs Dictatorship: The Bad Joke of Pretender to a non-Existent Throne Kowtowing to Netanyahu

Fariba Amini

Newark, Delaware (Feature — Special to Informed Comment) – The recent visit of Reza Pahlavi to Israel and his meeting with PM Netanyahu raise many questions. Why now and what is the meaning of this pilgrimage? What is it about water? Is water the main issue in Iran? This must be a joke. Reza Pahlavi […]

Authoritarianism

Leaked Pentagon Report: Israeli Intel Agency Mossad Agitated against Netanyahu’s weakening of Courts

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – John Hudson and Louisa Loveluck at the Washington Post report that a leak of Pentagon documents reveals that the U.S. is intensively spying on Israel and concludes that Israel’s intelligence service, Mossad, has encouraged both its own employees and the Israeli public to join protests against Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s […]

Featured

World’s Most Dangerous Flashpoint: Israeli Forces Repeatedly Invade Sacred al-Aqsa Mosque, Beat, Expel Worshipers, on behalf of Jewish Extremists

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Israeli newspaper Arab 48 reports that both on Wednesday and Thursday mornings, Israeli security forces invaded the al-Aqsa Mosque complex, the third holiest shrine in the Muslim world and expelled Palestinians who had been conducting an all-night retreat (i`tikaf) there for the holy fasting month of Ramadan. Video emerged […]

Featured

Many Civil Wars: The Extremist Israeli Gov’t has Roiled Relations with Biden and US Jews and Highlighted the Occupation of Palestine

H. Scott Prosterman

Oakland, Ca. (Feature: Special to Informed Comment) | – Some 450,000 Israeli protesters massed again this weekend against Prime Minister Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu’s efforts to disempower the Israeli judiciary, so he can pick the judges for his own corruption trials, declining to be mollified by his promises to find a compromise. Netanyahu’s attack on the […]

Featured

Rallies, Clashes Roil Israel as Netanyahu “Pauses” Gutting of Judiciary, and Far Right urges use of “Gasoline and Guns” on Protesters

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Israeli newspaper Arab 48 reports that clashed broke out Monday evening between centrist protesters against the Netanyahu government and far right thugs. Some 10,000 fascists gathered in front of the courthouse in Jerusalem to support Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s plan to weaken the judiciary. Some got into shouting matches […]

Featured

Universities, Labor Unions Strike to protest Netanyahu’s firing of Gallant, as Israel faces Complete Paralysis

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Israeli newspaper Arab 48 reports that Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu fired his minister of defense, Yoav Gallant, on Sunday evening, setting off a new round of massive protests, along with threats of strikes and university closures that seem likely to paralyze the country. Netanyahu had discussed firing Gallant […]

Haredim

Israel’s military reservists are joining protests – potentially transforming a political crisis into a security crisis

The Conversation

By Dan Arbell, American University | – (The Conversation) –The judicial overhaul plan of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, introduced in January, has thrown the country into its most severe domestic crisis since 1973. That crisis intensified on March 26, when Netanyahu fired the country’s defense minister, who had – less than 24 hours […]

Authoritarianism

Constitutional Crisis Threatens to Tear Israel Apart as Att’y-Gen. takes on Netanyahu and 200 Reservist Pilots refuse to Fly

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – On Thursday, the Israeli parliament passed a law preventing the Supreme Court from removing a sitting prime minister for inability to carry out his or her duties. This move was tactical, not strategic. Prime Minister Netanyahu is on trial for corruption, and he agreed with the Supreme Court in 2020 […]