NEWS:

Palestinian PM-designate Hamdallah says he hopes to form a government in a week or so. (Reuters)

Israeli officials accuse Palestinians of being unwilling to resume negotiations. (AP)

Pres. Abbas says Palestinians want to return to talks "as soon as possible," and other Palestinian officials say they are "exerting every possible effort" to make that happen. (Ma'an)

Palestinian officials reportedly say Abbas has warned Sec. Kerry he will effectively dismantle the PA if peace talks are not successfully resumed. (Jerusalem Post/The Guardian)

Palestinians are calling attention to the issue of the strategic fort of Latrun, occupied by Israel in 1967. (New York Times)

Israel's AG asserts in court that the "Absentee Property Law" applies in occupied East Jerusalem and Palestinian property there can thereby be "lawfully" seized from its owners by the state. (Ha'aretz)

A new poll suggests 72% of Jewish Israelis see Jerusalem as a divided city, but 74% refuse any notion of a Palestinian capital in any part of it. (Jerusalem Post)

Israeli settlers complain to Israel's housing minister about what they assert is a "de facto settlement freeze." (Jerusalem Post)

Palestinian prisoners say Israel should formally recognize them as prisoners of war. (Xinhua)

A delegation of Jordanian Islamists visits Gaza. (Ma'an)

The EU contributes €19 million to help pay Palestinian public sector employees' May salaries. (PNN)

Reem Omran, a young high-tech entrepreneur, is trying to promote IT business and education in Gaza. (Christian Science Monitor)

Gaza youths are increasingly trying to flee harsh conditions by crossing into Israel. (Al Monitor)

The rebuilding of the Nahr al-Bared refugee camp in Lebanon comes to standstill over funding shortfalls. (Daily Star)

COMMENTARY:

Thomas Friedman says regional instability makes peace with the Palestinians more, not less, important for Israel. (New York Times)

David Makovsky says Hamdallah's appointment is a victory for Fatah as a party in power. (WINEP)

Jonathan Schanzer says Hamdallah was chosen precisely because he is inexperienced and a political novice. (Foreign Policy)

Shlomi Eldar says Hamdallah's appointment might be aimed at drawing in more European involvement. (Al Monitor)

Amira Hass says the Ramallah leadership's most basic policies are unlikely to change under Hamdallah. (Ha'aretz)

Yitzhak Laor says, in order to succeed as a nation, Israel must end the occupation. (Ha'aretz)

The Jerusalem Post strongly implies Israel should retain control of all of Jerusalem. (Jerusalem Post)

Ron Kampeas says that while Kerry is appealing to both sides for progress, AIPAC puts all the onus on the Palestinians. (JTA)

Zvi Bar'el says lots of countries face major threats, but none of them talk about them as much as Israel does. (Ha'aretz)

Sarah Wildman says planned building in two Israeli settlements in occupied East Jerusalem could signal a flood of new settlement activity soon. (The New Yorker)