Date

News:
Israeli occupation forces arrest 41 Palestinians in the West Bank. (AP/Reuters/Ma’an/Ha’aretz/Jerusalem Post)
Israeli ministers will reportedly increase the pressure on Hamas and will worsen the conditions of Hamas members held in Israeli prisons. (Ha’aretz/Jerusalem Post/Times of Israel)
The kidnapping of three Israeli teenagers is spurring debate over the conduct of settlers in the occupied West Bank. (New York Times)
The PA is reportedly taking steps to halt the reconciliation process with Hamas. (Times of Israel)
PM Netanyahu says Israel is operating against Hamas to bring home the kidnapped teenagers. (Ha’aretz)
The EU condemns the kidnapping of the teenagers. (Jerusalem Post)
Norway cancels a conference of PA donor countries. (Ha’aretz)
Israel launches overnight airstrikes on Gaza. (Ma’an/JTA/Ynet)
Israel closes the Kerem Shalom crossing with Gaza. (Ma’an)
The US Consulate in Jerusalem warns American citizens to take precautions andavoid demonstrations during travel in the occupied West Bank. (JTA/Ha’aretz)
The Israel Medical Association will publish a booklet advising doctors on how to treat hunger-striking prisoners. (Ha’aretz)
US forces are being positioned in and around Iraq. (AP/The National)
UNSG Ban warns of “massive” sectarian violence in Iraq. (AP) 
Sunni insurgents push further into a province northeast of Baghdad.(AP/Reuters/New York Times)
PM Maliki is reportedly spending less time focusing on reconciliation with Kurds and Sunnis. (New York Times)
Saudi Arabia warns against foreign intervention in Iraq. (The National)
The New York Times examines the crisis in Iraq. (New York Times)
Turkey imposes a ban on media reporting about the seizure by ISIS of Turkish diplomats.  (Reuters)
Pres. Sisi swears in the new Egyptian government. (AP)
car bomb in eastern Syria kills five. (AP)
Iran and the P5+1 resume nuclear talks. (AP/Reuters/The National)
FM Hague says Britain plans to reopen its embassy in Iran. (Reuters/The National)
Commentary:
Asharq al-Awsat says the future of the Middle East depends on the crisis in Iraq. (Asharq al-Awsat)
Faisal Al Yafai says Pres. Obama’s “no war policy” leaves the US vulnerable. (The National)
Bakir Oweida says averting the partition of Iraq and Syria should be the number-one priority. (Asharq al-Awsat)
Steven Simon says ISIS will fail in Iraq and Iran will be the victor. (New York Times)
Hassan Barari says Maliki has become an obstacle to achieving stability in Iraq. (Jordan Times)
Katrina Vanden Heuvel says there is no equivalence to be drawn between Bush’s 2003 decision to invade Iraq and Obama’s 2011 decision to withdraw US troops. (Washington Post)
Eugene Robinson says Obama’s instincts about Iraq and Syria have been sound from the beginning. (Washington Post)
Aaron David Miller says Obama should break the momentum of the ISIS attacks and press Maliki to be a more inclusive leader. (Foreign Policy)
The Daily Star says  refugees are the only area in which Arab states have experienced true unity of late. (Daily Star)
Amos Harel says Israel's response to the kidnapping is aimed at driving a wedge between Pres. Abbas and Hamas (Ha’aretz)
Yair Ettinger says the kidnapping of the teenagers is turning Israelis against each other. (Ha’aretz)
Marc Goldberg says Israel’s “all-out efforts” to find the teenagers will push more Palestinians towards extremism. (Times of Israel)
Akiva Eldar says Netanyahu is wrong to blame Abbas for the kidnapping. (Al-Monitor)
Smadar Perry says the kidnapping of the teenagers is another failure for Abbas. (Ynet)
Martin Karplus says Israelis and Palestinians should work together to improve their “common homeland.” (Ha’aretz)
Abdel Latif el-Menawy says Sisi should be a man of the people. (Al Arabiya)

American Task Force on Palestine - 1634 Eye St. NW, Suite 725, Washington DC 20006 - Telephone: 202-262-0017