News:
Pres. Abbas says he will work to revive peace talks [1] with Israel. (AP)
Abbas inaugurates [2] the new Palestinian embassy [3] in Sweden. [4] (Ma’an/Times of Israel/Reuters)
The upcoming Israeli election [5] is not demonstrating much interest in the Palestinian issue. (AP)
The EU is reportedly preparing new sanctions [6] against settlements [7] which are to be enacted following the Israeli election. (Ha’aretz/Times of Israel)
Israel earmarks 500 acres [8] of private Palestinian land for annexation in Hebron. (Ma’an)
Egypt has reportedly killed a Hamas commander [9] in Sinai. (Times of Israel)
Israeli forces raid [10] the Abu Dis protest camp [11] for the fifth time. (Ma’an/PNN)
PA security forces [12] are continuing to arrest wanted fugitives currently hiding in the Balata refugee camp in Nablus. (Ma’an)
PM Netanyahu says [13] it is his duty to give [14] his upcoming speech to Congress. (New York Times/Times of Israel)
Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy [15] and Congressional [16] Black Caucus members [17] will skip Netanyahu’s [18] speech. (AFP/JTA/Ha’aretz/Times of Israel)
A poll indicates Israelis [19] are seeing a deterioration in ties with the US under Netanyahu. (Ha’aretz)
An Israeli film [20] gives voice to soldiers’ self-doubts after the 1967 war. (Reuters)
An American official [21] says the number of foreign fighters [22] traveling to join ISIS or rival militant groups in Syria is continuing to grow. (Reuters/The National)
ISIS, which had held Kayla Mueller [23] captive since August 2013, sends her parents at least three photographs of her corpse as proof of death. (New York Times)
Thousands of Yemenis protest [24] against the Houthi takeover [25] after the US, Britain and France [26] close their embassies [27] over security fears. (Reuters/AP/New York Times/The National)
Reuters looks at how the Houthis were able to drive Yemen [28] into a political vacuum. (Reuters)
The Washington Post profiles a key player in Yemen’s political crisis [29], former Pres. Saleh. (Washington Post)
A group of Al-Qaeda supporters in Yemen [30] pledge allegiance to ISIS. (Reuters)
Pres. Putin says Russia will help Egypt build [31] its first nuclear power plant. (AP)
Commentary:
Yossi Mekelberg [32] says by now Palestinians in Gaza have little trust in anyone, not even UNWRA. (Al Arabiya)
Danny Yatom [33] says the Arab and Israeli peace initiatives are the only way forward. (Ynet)
Peter Beinart [34] says Netanyahu’s is destroying the traditional American Jewish establishment and building a new one in its place. (Ha’aretz)
Ben Sales [35] looks at V15’s “ground game” to unseat Netanyahu in the next election. (JTA)
Salman Masalha [36] says Israel’s Palestinian citizens and liberals are not great leftists. (Ha’aretz)
Osama Al Sharif [37] says King Abdullah’s call for an Arab-Muslim coalition to fight extremism must be acknowledged by leaders, clerics and academics. (Jordan Times)
Rami Khouri [38] says the collapse of Yemen is an example of the structural weaknesses that plague many countries in the Arab world. (Daily Star)
Michael Young [39] asks if a P5+1 deal would lead to America’s acceptance of a dominant role for Iran in the Middle East. (The National)
Abdul Rahman Al Rashed [40] says poor education is “the mother of all problems” in the region. (Al Arabiya)
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