On 4 November, the Israeli Foreign Ministry cancelled the agreement the country signed with UNRWA in 1967. A week earlier, the Knesset had passed legislation banning UNRWA from operating in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories. Why is Israel doing this, and what could the consequences be?
Tag: Israel/Palestine Crisis
Civil Society Participation in International Criminal Justice
The International Criminal Court (ICC) is in trouble. To commentators and observers of the Court, one crisis seems to lead on to the next, so that the field of international criminal justice has been described as being in ‘perpetual crisis’.
Unwinnable Wars, Risks of Escalation, and the Nuclear Taboo
The announcement of the Nobel Peace Prize on October 11 coincided with a dangerous phase in two long wars — Israel’s war against Hamas and Hezbollah and Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine — that are both poised for escalation.
Russian Intrigues in Middle East Surge
On July 24, Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad was summoned to Moscow for a secret meeting in the Kremlin with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the same day that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed a joint session of the US Congress. The visit was announced only the following day when al-Assad was already back in Damascus,… Read more »
The Importance of Recognition – Even in Occupation
Norway, Spain, and Ireland recognized a Palestinian state that does not yet exist. This is why it still matters. On Wednesday May 22. Norway, Spain and Ireland declared that they would recognize Palestine as a state on May 28. The recognition has now become official. During a 22 May press conference, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas… Read more »
Chasing a Mirage Amid a Famine
The recurring refrain that there is a route to a two-state solution diverts attention from what is truly urgent: ending the famine and securing a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. It is difficult to believe, but after more than 200 days of war, there is still no ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. According to the… Read more »
Forgotten Victims: Gaza’s Journalists & UN Workers
The war in Gaza is the most deadly in modern times for journalists and UN personnel. Despite the seriousness of the situation, these killings are under-reported.
Optics as Politics: Culture, Language and Learning with UiO ChatGPT
Discussing the case of the University of Oslo ChatGPT and the plight of Palestinians, this blog calls for educators and researchers in peace and conflict studies, to consider the communicative politics of generative AI in their work.
Illusions and Peace Plans in the Middle East
Both the two-state and one-state solutions exist only in the imagination. Time has run away from them, as things stand today. The violent conflict between Israel and the Palestinians has been going on for 75 years, with Israel emerging stronger from all of the more serious outbreaks of warfare. How can this conflict be resolved?… Read more »
Gaza: A Religious Conflict?
Hamas named its terror attacks on 7 October ‘Operation Al-Aqsa Flood’. Hamas believes that Jewish extremists, with the direct and indirect support of the Israeli authorities, pose a threat to, and are plotting to take over, the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem. The terror attacks led to an outbreak of the kind of religious language… Read more »