The Council of Ministers condemned the new crime committed by the Israeli occupation army in Jenin today, Monday, and the death of three martyrs, including a child, and the injury of dozens, which is still ongoing.

The Cabinet continued: The international silence and double standards encourage this extremist government to practice more killing, destruction and intimidation against our people, and as long as the perpetrators and killers feel impunity, their crimes will not stop. We and our people will confront these attacks, and this occupation must become costly for Israel. All ministries are ready to provide what is necessary to support our people in Jenin.

After a session chaired by Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh, today, Monday, the Council said that it views the Israeli government's approval of measures to accelerate settlement activity in the West Bank with the utmost seriousness, and called on all member states of the Security Council to condemn this step, which would complete the attack on the foundations of the establishment of the State of Palestine, and attack Security and stability in the region, because Palestine and its cause are the core of the conflict and the key to peace.

He stressed that this step is a flagrant attack on our land, and a slap to the members of the Security Council who adopted Resolution 2334, which condemns settlement construction and calls for its cessation, stressing that the Palestinian response will not be limited to condemnation, we and our people will protect our land.

The Council of Ministers demanded the release of the bodies of the martyrs held in the refrigerators of the occupation prisons at the temperature of deep freezing. We are following this up with all international bodies, stressing that the detention of the bodies is one of the most heinous crimes committed by Israel, which prevents a dignified funeral for the martyrs and a farewell look from the parents to their children.

He called for the bodies of the martyrs buried in the graves of numbers to be handed over to graves without names, pointing out that history has not witnessed such crimes against the martyrs.

He said: Israel and its government will enact new legislation to imprison children, specifically Jerusalemites under the age of 12, and this is a crime against humanity and a serious and gross violation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and all international covenants. .

The Cabinet added, “Our communication with our sister Egypt is continuous regarding many issues, including Gaza gas, and the work is taking place in partnership between an Egyptian developer company and the investment fund, and there were Israeli obstacles, and now the matter has become available. The Gaza gas field is a Palestinian field located in the Palestinian territorial waters off the shores of The Gaza Strip is a national treasure.

He thanked Egypt for its efforts to help us work in the field and the political and economic implications that this carries for our people, and that the work will be based on the spirit of partnership with the private sector and the agreements between the Arab Republic of Egypt and the State of Palestine.

The Cabinet expressed its appreciation for the outcomes of the President's visit to the friendly People's Republic of China, which culminated in the declaration of the strategic partnership between the two countries, stressing the readiness of the relevant ministries to start work on implementing what was agreed upon in trade, industrial and investment issues and to accelerate negotiations to establish a free trade zone between China and Palestine.

He also welcomed the Chinese technical delegations that will arrive in Palestine next month to start work in the industrial zone in Tarqumiya and later in Nablus, and announced the naming of a field in the Ramallah and Al-Bireh governorate in the name of the friendly Republic of China.

Today, the Council of Ministers will discuss the national strategy to combat poverty, amend the basis for admission to universities, the blessed Eid al-Adha holiday, issues related to land settlement, infrastructure and electricity projects, and aid for IVF and infertility cases.

The council will also discuss draft laws and regulations related to the work of museums and the national strategy for artificial intelligence.

Egypt condemned today, Monday, the attack launched by the Israeli occupation forces on the city of Jenin, and the accompanying air strikes and shootings against civilians, which resulted in the death of 3 citizens and the wounding of 31 others.

In a statement, the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs affirmed Egypt's complete rejection of this aggression, which contradicts all provisions of international law and decisions of international legitimacy, warning of the dangers of continued escalation against the Palestinian people.

She pointed out that such attacks only lead to inflaming the situation and threaten to get out of control and undermine efforts to reduce tension in the occupied territories.

Hussein Sheikh, Secretary of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, said on Monday that an emergency meeting of the Palestinian leadership will be held in light of the Israeli escalation.

Al-Sheikh said in a tweet on Twitter that the meeting, headed by President Mahmoud Abbas, will take unprecedented decisions.

He considered what is happening as a fierce and open political, security and economic war against the Palestinian people.

He said, "We are in the midst of a comprehensive battle on all fronts, which requires the unity of our people in the face of this aggression."

Qatar and the UAE announced today (Monday) the resumption of diplomatic representation between them, through the resumption of the work of the Embassy of the State of Qatar in Abu Dhabi and its consulate in Dubai, and the UAE embassy in Doha, according to the official media.

The official Qatar News Agency (QNA) said, "Based on the Al-Ula agreement, and the keenness of the two countries to strengthen bilateral relations, the State of Qatar and the United Arab Emirates announced the re-establishment of diplomatic representation between them."

(QNA) added that this will be the resumption of work by the Embassy of the State of Qatar in Abu Dhabi and its consulate in Dubai, and the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in Doha today (Monday), corresponding to June 19, 2023.

She indicated that the two sides affirmed that this step comes as an embodiment of the will of the leaderships of the two countries and as a reinforcement of the march of joint Arab action in order to achieve the aspirations of the two peoples.

On this occasion, the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Qatar, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman Al Thani, today received a phone call from the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

During the call, the Qatari Prime Minister welcomed the resumption of diplomatic relations between the two countries, expressing his country's aspiration to strengthen partnership with the UAE, which reflects the depth of brotherly relations between the two peoples.

Sheikh Mohammed and Sheikh Abdullah exchanged congratulations on the resumption of the work of Qatar's embassy in Abu Dhabi, its consulate in Dubai and the UAE embassy in Doha, and they reviewed the fraternal relations between the two countries and ways to enhance cooperation in various fields in order to achieve the interests of the two peoples. They also exchanged views on regional and international developments, and a number of issues of concern. Common interest, according to the same source.

The UAE, along with Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Egypt, announced in June 2017 the severance of diplomatic relations with Qatar and the closure of its land, sea and air ports to Doha, accusing it of supporting and financing terrorism and interfering in its internal affairs, which Doha strongly denied.

After the reconciliation that took place under the "Al-Ula" agreement at the 41st Gulf Summit in January 2021, Qatar held bilateral discussions with Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the UAE to resolve outstanding issues, and the three countries restored trade relations and transportation with Qatar to their previous state.

During the year 2021, Doha received ambassadors from Egypt and Saudi Arabia and sent its ambassadors to Cairo and Riyadh, while the resumption of diplomatic representation with the UAE was delayed until today's announcement.

No matter how the battle over judicial reforms in Israel ends, whether through reaching an agreement between the opposition and the Netanyahu government, or through the latter imposing its will, or leaving the status quo unhindered, Israel is not and will not be a true democracy as long as it remains in power. occupation.

I cannot applaud and admire enough the hundreds of thousands of Israelis who have protested for nine consecutive weeks against the Netanyahu government's plan to subvert the Israeli judiciary under the pretext of necessary "reforms". Indeed, Netanyahu and Justice Minister Levin were determined to subject the Israeli Supreme Court to the whims of the simple majority in the Knesset, appointing judges to an increasingly representative panel handpicked by his government. If such legislation were passed, it would be tantamount to giving the government unlimited power without any checks and balances, and destroying the foundation of democracy on which the state was founded and of which Israelis are particularly proud.

The irony here is that while the majority of Israelis believe their country is a democracy and take to the streets enthusiastically to preserve it, often referring to it as the only democracy in the Middle East, what they miss is that no country can claim to be democratic and be an occupying power. At the same time. Implementing in reality two different sets of laws and rules, one that governs Israeli citizens and grants them social, economic and political protection and freedoms, as opposed to the other set of military laws and regulations that govern Palestinians under occupation and denies them their basic human rights, is completely inconsistent with democracy by any definition and in any form. of forms.

The question is, why did the Israelis become so comfortably numb to the brutal occupation and not once protested against its continuation, as if it were a normal condition that had no effect or repercussions on the occupying power or the occupier?

Public Harshness: To begin with, successive Israeli governments, especially since the second intifada in 2000, during which very conservative governments were largely in power, have systematically engaged in harsh public narratives against the Palestinians and portrayed them as irredeemable enemies. The portrayal of the Palestinians in this way was deliberate, even though every Israeli government knew very well that the Palestinians would never be in a position to pose a real existential threat against their country.

Yet they continue to promote their denunciations of the Palestinians for public consumption, knowing that they are feeding the hatred and sowing hostility against the Palestinians, which is now defining the Israeli-Palestinian relationship. It is clear that acrimonious public narratives pitting one people against another promote conflict rather than cooperation, which is essential to a functioning democracy.

Lack of awareness: Most Israelis have very little first-hand knowledge of the harshness of the occupation and the pain and suffering Palestinians endure day in and day out. If Israelis had witnessed nightly raids terrifying young and old, arbitrary confinement, home demolitions, forced evictions, confiscation of private land, uprooting of trees, humiliating checkpoints, vandalism by settlers, and cheering soldiers shooting to kill, they would certainly have a better understanding of why. In that the occupation is not and cannot be sustainable, but it is contrary to every human value that they hold dear.

Even if some of the hundreds of thousands of Israelis who stood tall to fight to preserve their democracy had for one day experienced what the Palestinians endure every day under occupation, they would understand the extent of the collapse of Israel's democracy and the shamelessness of claiming it. They are entitled to live in a free society while the Palestinians live in slavery.

Normalization of Occupation: To understand the gravity of how occupation has become a normal state for most Israelis, one statistic tells the story: 80 percent of all Israelis have been born since the occupation began in 1967. Occupation is for every Israeli citizen under the age of 56 – whether soldier, student or researcher Or a military leader, a doctor, a construction worker, a carpenter, a secretary, a businessman, an engineer or a government official - naturally. Those who wanted to end it were greatly numb. Many are afraid to talk about it publicly, let alone advocate publicly for the absolute necessity of creating an independent Palestinian state to end the conflict.

The killing of Palestinians has become almost daily routine and many Israelis only temporarily wake up when a Palestinian gunman kills a Jewish Israeli. Immediately you hear calls for revenge, especially from far-right Israelis, security forces gather immediately to search for the perpetrators, gun battles often break out, Palestinian militants are often killed, and unfortunately innocent Palestinian civilians are caught in the crossfire. And they end up paying with their lives. And, of course, leave it to the settlers to carry out their atrocities by taking revenge on any Palestinian - guilty or innocent they don't care. After a day or two, Israeli Jews forget everything, but the vicious circle continues. This is Israeli-style democracy.

Living with the status quo: After 56 years of occupation, an increasing number of Israelis have given up on resolving the conflict with the Palestinians and come to accept the status quo as a permanent state in which they live comfortably. Successive right-wing governments led by Netanyahu have stated publicly that there will be no Palestinian state under their rule, preferring to maintain the status quo regardless of frequent outbreaks of violence that Israel has learned to control at reasonable cost.

The notion that the status quo can continue indefinitely is completely misleading, as there is absolutely no sign and no reason to believe that the Palestinians will give up their right to a state of their own. In recent years, the oppressive occupation has become increasingly unbearable, the resentment and hatred against Israelis piercing, violence targeting Israelis on the rise, and despair and despondency all-consuming Palestinians, leaving them with little to lose. The Israelis helped create this volatile environment. And now it's only a matter of time when the next explosion will happen. This is not how democracy works and Israelis must face this grim reality sooner rather than later.

Palestinian Ambition to Destroy Israel: Successive Israeli governments have brainwashed the public by promoting the idea that even if the Palestinians establish their own state, it will only be the first stage in their ultimate goal of eliminating Israel completely. But then not a single Israeli leader who opposes the establishment of a Palestinian state has provided any evidence or argument to substantiate his claims, other than using the empty rhetoric of some Palestinian fighters who say that this is in fact their national goal. One might ask, however, by what means, military or otherwise, the Palestinians will one day be in a position to realize such a delusion against Israel's formidable military machine capable of crushing any violent provocation deemed a threat to Israel's existence?

By promoting such an absurd narrative, the Israeli government can “justify” not only the occupation but its endeavors to annex more land, expand and legalize existing illegal settlements, uproot Palestinians, and clear vast areas of its Palestinian population for military training. These activities are carried out systematically in the name of national security, and unfortunately more and more Israelis are coming to terms with this sinister scheme.

None of the above suggests that the Palestinians are innocent by any standard. They made many mistakes and missed many opportunities in the past to make peace because they wanted it all and ended up with nothing. However, it is now up to Israel, as the dominant power, to change the dynamic of the conflict by pursuing peace based on the two-state solution. Otherwise, the Israeli social fabric will continue to disintegrate, its violent regional conflicts will intensify, and its international standing will diminish. Israel will only be a shell for itself, a pariah state that destroys the Jewish dream of establishing an independent, free, strong and just state that every Jew can be proud of, loved by its friends and envied by its enemies.

The beacon of Israeli democracy began to fade with the start of the occupation. It is time for the hundreds of thousands of Israeli protesters who poured into the streets to protect their democracy and face the truth: the occupation is depriving three million Palestinians in the West Bank of everything the protesters want for themselves.

Even if protesters triumph over Netanyahu's horrific scheme, they will not save Israel's democracy unless they relentlessly take to the streets and demand an end to the occupation and once again make Israel a beacon of democracy in the Middle East and beyond.

The decision of the Israeli government to facilitate settlement construction in the West Bank, including Jerusalem, without its approval, as is the case until yesterday, except for it being a challenge to international resolutions, including UN Security Council Resolution 2334, which condemned settlement construction and considered it illegal and called not only for its cessation. And even removing it, it also carries with it several goals, most notably the preparation for the annexation of the West Bank to the occupying state.

Settlement expansion, which will be headed by the extremist Minister of Finance, means confiscating more Palestinian lands to expand settlements as well as construct settlement roads. More than 750,000 settlers are present in the settlements built on Palestinian land.

And if we take into account the crimes committed by herds of settlers against our people, their land, property and sanctities, then this increase in the number of settlers means a doubling of these crimes, within the framework of the attempts of the occupying power to force our people to leave their land, which was announced by more than one Israeli minister and official that Ethnic cleansing is coming and it is only a matter of time and when the circumstances become clear.

Those who bear responsibility for what is happening in the West Bank, in addition to Jerusalem, are not only the occupying state, the United States, and Western countries with a colonial past and present, but also the Palestinian, Arab and Islamic side, which does not move a finger except for statements of denunciation and denunciation that have become meaningless to the occupying state.

America and many Western countries are known for their support for the occupying state, and their shy criticism of the occupying state is nothing but ashes in the eyes to give the occupying state more time to implement the policy of annexation, expansion and ethnic cleansing.
Continuing to bet on America and other European countries is a losing bet by all standards and criteria. The bet must first be on our steadfast people, who face the bullets of the occupation and herds of settlers with the bare chests of their children, and refuse to surrender, submit and raise the white flag.

The time has come for the Palestinian side to take practical steps on the ground to confront the persistence of the occupation, which sees the current weak and divided Palestinian situation as an opportunity in attempts to pass its plans.
We have lost or are on the way to lose Jerusalem permanently, and now it is the turn of the rest of the West Bank, without moving a finger on the ground, so how long will we remain in this situation and the long-standing pattern?!!
Inaction in confrontation will increase the occupation's ferocity, and history will not be merciful to anyone who does not prioritize the supreme national interest over partisan and personal interests.

At least 5 Israeli soldiers were injured, Monday morning, when an explosive device exploded in a military vehicle in the Jabriyat neighborhood on the outskirts of Jenin camp, in the northern West Bank.

According to the Hebrew channel Reshet Kan, the injuries are to soldiers from the "Border Guards", and that they are in good and stable condition.

Video clips showed at least one vehicle being damaged by resistance groups in Jenin.

For the first time in more than 20 years, the occupation forces are using a helicopter to carry out an air attack against a target in the West Bank.

Those planes fired one missile at an empty area in the vicinity of Al-Jabriyat Mosque.

The Israeli occupation forces launched, at dawn and Monday morning, a campaign of arrests in separate areas of the West Bank.

According to local sources, these forces arrested the editor, Mahdi Al-Sarsour, and his brother, Raed, from Hebron.

Meanwhile, the young man, Obeida Ziyad, and the boy, Obeida Ghawanmeh, from Al-Jalazoun camp, north of Ramallah, and the citizen Kamal Al-Na’asan, and his son, the boy Abdullah, were arrested from Al-Mughair, east of Ramallah.

In Nablus, the editor, Ammar Asaad, was arrested from the town of Beita, while Raed Sobh was arrested from Al-Fara'a refugee camp in Tubas.

On Monday morning, the Hebrew Kan radio station revealed some of the deliberations that took place a few days ago before the Foreign Affairs and Security Committee in the Israeli Knesset, in which Benjamin Netanyahu attended to answer the questions of the committee members about some security issues.

According to Hebrew Radio, a question was asked to Netanyahu about the Israeli army’s preparations for a comprehensive war on several fronts, which also includes an expected intervention by “Israeli Arabs” (Palestinians of the interior). also".

Netanyahu added: "The Israeli army is preparing for this. There are 10 military battalions training for this thing. Although this is not enough, they are preparing for this very day."

On Monday, the US State Department expressed its deep annoyance with the Israeli government's new settlement decisions, which include building 4,500 units in the West Bank, and approving a change in its construction management by speeding up and approving plans.

Ministry spokesman Matthew Miller called on the Israeli government to fulfill its commitments made in Aqaba in Jordan and Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt, and to conduct a dialogue aimed at preventing escalation.

Miller said: The United States opposes these unilateral measures, which are steps that constitute an obstacle to peace and make achieving two states more difficult.

At dawn on Monday, a leading delegation from the "Hamas" movement, headed by the head of its political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, arrived in the Iranian capital, "Tehran", coinciding with the presence of a delegation from the Islamic Jihad movement, headed by its Secretary General, Ziyad al-Nakhala.

The Hamas delegation includes Saleh Al-Arouri, Khalil Al-Haya, Nizar Awadallah, and Muhammad Nasr.

Hamas said in a statement that this visit comes at the invitation of the Iranian leadership, noting that Haniyeh and the leadership of the movement will meet with Iranian officials to discuss many political and field issues related to the Palestinian cause.

Jenin – Five Palestinians, including one child, were killed and dozens wounded in a 10-hour long Israeli raid in the city of Jenin in the occupied West Bank on Monday, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

29-year-old Qassam Abu Siryie, 21-year-old Khaled Asa'sah, 21-year-old Kais Jabareen, and 15-year-old Ahmad Saqer and Ahmed Daraghmeh were identified as the victims.

Twenty-three of those injured are in a serious to critical condition, according to the Health Ministry. 

Hazem Emad Nasser, a journalist, was among those injured from live fire. 

Israeli special forces stormed the Jabriyat neighborhood, on the outskirts of Jenin refugee camp camp, before they were detected and called in military reinforcements. 

Armed resistance fighters used firearms and explosive devices against the occupation forces. 

Six Israeli soldiers were injured in the clashes. 

On top of deploying snipers, Israel used a helicopter in the West Bank for the first time in years to attack the Jabriyat neighborhood. The missile fell in an empty area near a local mosque. 

The Israeli army arrested several Palestinians during the raid, including the released Hamas prisoner Asim Abu Al-Haija. 

In an unusual move, US President Joe Biden's administration informed, on Sunday evening, the far-right government in Israel, led by Benjamin Netanyahu, of a new postponement of the so-called "Negev Forum", which was to be held in Morocco at the beginning of next month.

According to the Hebrew website, Ynet, this step was taken against the background of the approval of plans to build more than 4,500 settlement units in the West Bank.

The meeting was scheduled to take place in Morocco at the beginning of next July, after it was postponed days ago from the date previously set at the end of this month, due to the Eid al-Adha holiday, as it was postponed last March. Because of the security tensions in the Palestinian territories.

An Israeli political source said, on Sunday evening, that the Gaza Strip, which is controlled by Hamas, will not benefit from the decision to develop the gas field off the coast of the Strip.

The website of the Hebrew newspaper Israel Hayom quoted the source as saying that as long as there is no tangible progress in the issue of the Israeli prisoners and missing persons, Hamas and the Gaza Strip will not benefit from the development of the gas field.

The source pointed out that all the Israeli security services gave their approval to develop the field 23 years after its discovery, without clarifying how the profits will be prevented from being converted into payments as salaries for those carrying out the operations that the Palestinian Authority continues to pay the money to.

The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced this afternoon that it had instructed the competent authorities to start developing the gas field, in coordination with Egypt and the Palestinian Authority.

The Israeli government is trying to search for options of economy in exchange for security in order to buy calm or at least reduce the attacks and security threats emanating from Jenin.

According to the Hebrew Channel 12, in a report published on its website, the unit of the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Palestinian Territories is currently trying to increase the number of Palestinians allowed to enter Jenin to shop, especially since the city is considered a shopping empire for them.

She pointed out that about 10,000 vehicles of internal Palestinians entered Jenin during the weekend (Friday-Saturday), amid expectations of an increase in numbers with the advent of Eid al-Adha, which Israel will seek to exploit.

According to the channel, the Israeli Government Action Coordinator Unit is studying options to encourage a series of economic relief for Jenin, which may contribute to stability, and work to promote civil activities for this, including the direct transfer of goods from the governorate to Israel, as is happening with some governorates in the West Bank. .

While Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was trying to appear before his cabinet ministers with a strong stance and talking about his intention to move forward with judicial reforms, the weekly session of his government witnessed a campaign of shouting and insults among a group of ministers.

According to the Hebrew website Ynet, the Minister of Education, Galit Distel Atbarian, entered into a heated discussion with the Minister of Intelligence, Gila Gamliel, before he moved into a state of shouting and insults.

Gamliel said that the coalition agreements kept the Likud busy from important issues, while Atbarian called on her not to interfere and remain silent, describing her as a "backward" that no one in the Likud likes, and that she is just a "stone in the coalition's shoe."

Later, Atbarian wrote via Twitter, that Gamliel had arrived late for the government meeting as usual, and started telling everyone to show that she is a person and she is the only one who has solutions. "A stone in the shoes of the coalition," and because of that she screamed again, and then leaked what happened in the meeting to reporters, and I stand behind every word I said that she was "a stone in the shoes of the coalition and her behavior is embarrassing and disturbing."

Later, Netanyahu said he spoke to the two ministers and made it clear to them that he was not ready to accept such behavior.

The explosive session also witnessed an exchange of accusations in loud voices between the ministers of the Jewish Power Party, led by Itamar Ben Gvir, and Shas, against the backdrop of postponing the rabbinical elections.

The Independent Commission for Human Rights, the Board of Grievances, said today, Sunday, that it is following up on the security services' summoning and arresting dozens of citizens affiliated with the Hamas movement.

In a statement, the commission indicated that most of them were released while more than 30 citizens are still detained by the security services. It is contrary to reality and that most of them are covered by unfounded criminal charges, but rather directed as a pretext for continuing detention. As stated in its statement.

And she considered that the continued summons and arrests on the basis of political affiliation, the delay in implementing court decisions and the mistreatment of detainees constitutes a violation of citizen rights and a crime punishable by law, and requires the relevant authorities, led by the Public Prosecution, to intervene immediately to stop these violations and immediately release detainees from the security services. .

The Independent Commission for Human Rights called for the immediate release of detainees against whom release decisions have been issued by the courts, and for the cessation of summons and arrests on the background of political orientations.

The authority called on the Public Prosecution to issue directives to the relevant authorities to immediately release and take the necessary measures to punish the violators.

• And she demanded to be allowed to play her role in visiting the detainees without restrictions or delay to see their conditions.
• And she stressed the need for judicial authorities not to extend detention except in necessary cases, and for detention to be a last resort, and to seriously investigate allegations of torture and ill-treatment.

On Sunday, the spokesman for the Palestinian presidency, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, said that the leadership will study its options to define the relationship with Israel, hold it accountable, and prosecute it legally in international courts.

In an interview with the official "Voice of Palestine" radio station, Abu Rudeineh stressed, commenting on the Israeli government's decision to accelerate the stages of settlement growth in the West Bank, that settlements are illegal and contrary to international law.

He added: "Settlement construction and failure to meet the rights of the Palestinian people will not bring security, peace and stability to the region."

The spokesman for the Palestinian Presidency warned that these new settlement decisions are tantamount to playing with fire and increase tension and escalate the situation on the ground, noting that this matter is no longer acceptable under any circumstances.

He called on the US administration to assume its responsibilities and take urgent action to stop such settlement decisions, which threaten to explode and escalate the situation.

Today, Sunday, the Israeli court in Ramle postponed deciding on the decision of the prisoner Daqqa’s eligibility to appear before the “Early Release Committee,” provided that the court judge issues his decision within a week of its date.

It is noteworthy that the prisoner, Daqqa, has completed his 37-year "life" sentence since March 24, 2023, but he is still arbitrarily detained after adding two years to his sentence in 2018, on the pretext of his attempt to help the prisoners by contacting their families.

On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided to implement the gas field development project off the coast of the Gaza Strip, known as (Gaza Marine).

According to what was stated in a statement by Netanyahu's office - as reported on the seventh Hebrew channel - this comes within the framework of the ongoing negotiations between Israel and Egypt and in cooperation with the Palestinian Authority.

He pointed out that the implementation of the decision will be subject to coordination between the Israeli security services, through conducting direct negotiations with Egypt, and coordination with the authority, in a way that guarantees the security and political interests of Israel.

Today, Sunday, the Secretary of the Executive Committee of the PLO, Hussein Al-Sheikh, announced the boycott of the meeting of the Higher Economic Committee with the Israeli occupation, which was scheduled to be held tomorrow.

Al-Sheikh said, through his Twitter account, that this decision came after the Israeli government decided to accelerate the stages of settlement growth in the West Bank and authorized its Finance Minister Smotrich to ratify this.

He added that the Palestinian leadership will study a number of other measures and decisions for implementation related to the relationship with Israel.

Today, Sunday, an Israeli court issued an 8-year prison sentence against the young man, Mustafa Awwad, from Tamra, in the occupied territories.

The ruling was issued by the Israeli court, under the pretext of the participation of the young man, Awwad, in the events of the Gift of Dignity in May 2021.

The Israeli government is scheduled to approve, on Sunday, a dramatic decision aimed at shortening and abbreviating the process of obtaining building permits in settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, allowing the construction of more settlement units there.

This step, if approved, aims to reverse the situation that has existed for more than 25 years, through which construction will be strengthened without the approval of the political level, basically, at every stage of it.

And according to the Hebrew channel Reshet Kan, the approval of the political level will no longer be required to submit construction plans to the Supreme Council for Planning and Building, neither at the filing stage nor at the project verification stage.

Instead of the approval of the Israeli prime minister and his army minister, on each of the planned steps, which include 4 or more different approvals and years of discussions, the initial approval of the planning permit will be under the authority of the minister in the Ministry of Defense in Bezalel Smotrich, and this was within the coalition agreement when forming the government. Between the Likud and the religious Zionist party.

The channel says that since Smotrich entered the Ministry of the Army, as its second minister, more housing units have been approved than in any full year so far.

During this week, the construction of 4,570 settlement units will be approved, of which 1,332 units are in the final stages, amid expectations that thousands of additional units will be approved by the end of this year, especially since it was decided to convene the Supreme Planning Council once every 3 months with the aim of approving housing units.

Yesh Din, an Israeli human rights organization, said, "This decision is dramatic and destructive, and aims to allow settlement construction without recognition in the West Bank, and to make any opposition to this construction irrelevant. The decision, if accepted, will leave Smotrich's supporters the ability to promote expansion and settlement establishment without any Oversight, and we call on every party opposing the annexation of the West Bank to intervene immediately to thwart the decision that will allow full annexation in the near future.

A new 72-hour truce entered into force in Sudan on Sunday morning, on the eve of a conference to coordinate the humanitarian aid needed by about half of the country's population.

The army, led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces, led by Muhammad Hamdan Dagalo, had previously concluded, most of the time with Saudi-American mediation, more than one truce since the outbreak of the conflict between them on April 15, but it was not fully adhered to on the ground.

However, the two sides have largely adhered to the recent 24-hour truce, which took place at the end of last week. Witnesses confirmed to AFP at the time that the truce provided a calm that they had not experienced since the start of the fighting, but that the battles resumed immediately after the end of the cease-fire agreement.

The new truce took effect at 6:00 local time (0400 GMT). An hour after it began, witnesses in Khartoum told AFP that the situation was still "calm".

And residents in the capital expressed their desire for the cease-fire agreements to be longer.

Hanaa Hussein, who lives in central Khartoum, said, "Our problem is that the days following the armistice are very harsh, as if the fighters want to compensate for the days of the armistice."

For his part, said Sami Omar, who lives in the suburb of Omdurman, north of the capital, "We want a comprehensive cease-fire."

He added, "The truce is not enough for us to return to life. They may stop fighting, but the Rapid Support Forces will not leave the houses (which its members have taken control of), just as passing through the checkpoints is difficult during the fighting days."

On Saturday night, Saudi Arabia and the United States announced "the agreement of representatives of the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces to cease fire in all parts of Sudan for a period of 72 hours, starting from June 18-21."

The statement confirmed that the two parties pledged that they would "refrain from movements, attacks, the use of warplanes, drones, artillery bombardment, reinforcement of positions, or resupply of forces," and they would allow "freedom of movement and the delivery of humanitarian aid throughout Sudan."

The army confirmed its approval of the armistice, but indicated that "we will deal with a decisive response to any violations committed by the rebels during its validity period."

The support forces affirmed their commitment to "what serves the purposes of the humanitarian truce, especially facilitating the delivery of aid (...) and opening safe passages for citizens."

Riyadh and Washington called on the two parties to the conflict to "consider the great suffering of the Sudanese people, and the need for full commitment to the ceasefire and the cessation of violence."

The declared truce coincides with a conference to coordinate the humanitarian response, which will start Monday in Geneva.

According to United Nations estimates, 25 million people, more than half of the estimated population of 45 million, need assistance in a country that was considered one of the poorest countries in the world even before the conflict.

The fighting caused a shortage of food and basic services. Medical sources confirm that three-quarters of the hospitals located in combat zones are out of service.

Saudi Arabia, which chairs the conference in partnership with other countries and parties, announced that the conference aims to "announce pledges to support the humanitarian response to Sudan and the region."

The United Nations indicated earlier this month that its humanitarian response plan had received only 16 percent of the required funding.

"Out of the total $2.6 billion needed for the humanitarian response this year, we have received only 400 million," said spokesman for the Secretary-General Stephane Dujarric.

The announcement of the new truce came on a day that witnessed an escalation in air and artillery bombardment of various areas in Khartoum, while violence in the Darfur region in the west of the country prompted an increasing number of people to flee to Chad.

The Resistance Committees, which are popular groups that have been active in providing support since the start of the conflict, reported that neighborhoods in southern Khartoum, including Mayo and Yarmouk, were bombed by the army on Saturday.

In a statement, it announced "the death of 17 civilian victims, including five children," and the injury of others, and "the destruction of 25 homes."

The Rapid Support Forces accused the army of attacking "a number of residential neighborhoods" in the south of the capital with air strikes, which led to "dozens killed and injured."

Witnesses in Khartoum confirmed to AFP on Saturday that the intensity of the aerial bombardment had increased in the past two days.

The conflict has killed more than 2,000 people, according to the latest figures from the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED). However, the actual numbers may be much higher, according to relief agencies and international organizations.

Likewise, the battles caused the displacement of more than 2.2 million people, more than 528 thousand of whom sought refuge in neighboring countries, according to the International Organization for Migration.

More than 149,000 people crossed into Chad on the border with the Darfur region, where the situation is of growing concern, especially in El Geneina, the center of West Darfur state, one of the five states of the region.

Earlier this week, the United Nations warned that what the region is witnessing may amount to "crimes against humanity."

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken arrived Sunday morning in Beijing, on a visit that is the highest by an American diplomat since 2018 and aims to try to ease bilateral tensions.

And at a time when much progress is not expected due to the many points of contention, the goal remains to work to start a diplomatic thaw and maintain a dialogue to "responsibly manage Sino-American relations," according to the US State Department.

Time is running out because next year is the deadline for holding elections in both the United States and Taiwan, which China considers one of its provinces that it wants to re-annex by force if necessary.

Blinken is spending two days in the Chinese capital as part of this visit, which was originally scheduled for February, but was suddenly canceled at the time, after a Chinese balloon flew over American territory, which Washington considered to be for "espionage" purposes, while Beijing confirmed that it was a meteorological vehicle that deviated from its course.

While Blinken was heading to China, US President Joe Biden downplayed the balloon incident, saying, "I don't think the (Chinese) leaders knew where it was, what was inside it, or what was going on." "I think it was more embarrassing" for Beijing, he told reporters on Saturday, "than it was intentional."

Biden hopes to meet again with President Xi Jinping "in the coming months" with the aim of "talking about our legitimate differences, but also about areas where we can agree." The two presidents had a long and friendly meeting in November 2022 on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali.

The two leaders are likely to attend the next G20 summit in September in New Delhi. Xi is invited to San Francisco in November when the United States hosts the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum.

Speaking in Washington before his departure, Blinken wanted to sound somewhat optimistic. He said this two-day visit should "open direct lines of communication so that our two countries can responsibly manage our relationship, including by addressing some challenges and bad perceptions and in order to avoid miscalculations."

He added that "intense competition requires continuous diplomacy to ensure that it does not turn into a confrontation or conflict" because "the world expects the cooperation of the United States and China."

Blinken was speaking at a news conference alongside his Singaporean counterpart, Vivian Balakrishnan. The latter described the Sino-American relationship as a "challenge of the century," saying, "The rest of the world will watch you. We hope, and I believe, that you will be able to manage your differences."

Taiwan represents the most thorny issue between the two powers. Beijing carried out historic military maneuvers around the island in August in response to a visit to Taiwan by then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi as part of an Asian tour.

Before Blinken's visit, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said the United States should "respect China's core concerns" and cooperate with Beijing.

"The United States should abandon the illusion of dealing with China from a position of strength. China and the United States should develop relations based on mutual respect and equality, and respect their differences," he added.

Blinken's visit is the first by a US Secretary of State to China since a visit in October 2018 by his predecessor, Mike Pompeo, who later pursued a strategy of confrontation with Beijing in the last years of Donald Trump's presidency.

Since then, the Biden administration has maintained this hard line and gone further in some areas, including by imposing export controls aimed at limiting Beijing's purchase and manufacture of advanced chips "for military applications".

But the US administration wants to cooperate with China on key issues such as climate. Blinken's visit also comes at a time when part of China is experiencing a heat wave, with a new record temperature recorded in mid-June.

For Danny Russell, a former senior State Department official, each side has an interest in this visit: China hopes to avoid new US restrictions on technology and any new support for Taiwan. The United States, for its part, wants to prevent any incident that could lead to a military confrontation.

"Blinken's short visit will not solve any of the big problems in the US-China relationship, and not necessarily the small ones either. Nor will it prevent either side from pursuing their competitive agendas," Russell said.

"But his visit could revive much-needed direct dialogue and send a signal that the two countries are moving from rhetoric of anger in front of the media to more sober talks behind closed doors," he added.

The threats of the occupation to launch a large-scale military operation in the northern West Bank to uproot the resistance operations carried out by the Palestinian groups, especially in Nablus, the Balata and Askar camps, and in Jenin and its camp, where these operations are worrying not only the occupation authorities represented by the Ministry of the Army, but also the flocks of settlers, as they targeted many Among the operations of the Palestinian groups are the flocks of settlers in response to their attacks on the citizens and their committing war crimes in Hawara, where the burning of houses, cars and other crimes that affected people, trees, stones and sanctities.

In the belief of the occupying state, the threat of this operation, which it announces on every occasion, is to stop this phenomenon, that is, the phenomenon of the resistance groups. On the contrary, any operation of this kind will be confronted by these groups, and if the occupying state succeeds in this goal This is unlikely, as many young men will join these groups as a tribute to the martyrs and to tell the occupation that our people will continue to struggle until they fully achieve their national goals of return, self-determination, and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.

In fact, this occupation threat and intimidation carries with it other goals, which is to embarrass the Palestinian Authority, and even weaken it and pressure it to take serious action against these groups on the grounds that they, or most of them, are in the areas under the control of the Palestinian Authority, without any consideration that the occupation forces violate these areas on a daily basis. By ignoring all the agreements that prevent the occupation forces from invading and storming these areas.

Also, among the objectives of this threat and intimidation is to satisfy the settlers who are pressuring the government and the army to carry out this operation, in the belief that such an operation can end the resistance in the West Bank so that they can multiply their attacks and crimes against our people, their land and property, and the expansion of settlements and the establishment of other settlements on the ground. Palestinians as a prelude to annexing it after it is done according to their mistaken belief that our people will surrender and leave their land, as in the years of the Nakba and Naksa.
If such a process takes place, things will become more complicated and exacerbate the already growing state of hostility as a result of the daily crimes committed by the occupation forces and herds of settlers, who are responsible for what is happening in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.

The occupation must think a million times before taking this step, which will threaten the security of the region and may lead to war, especially since the region is on the crater of a volcano as a result of the occupation violations that threaten an explosion whose extent cannot be predicted and the conditions that may result from it that will affect the occupation side as well.
And our people, in any case, must not rule this out by the occupation, and confront that by continuing steadfastness, because steadfastness is what worries the occupation and prevents the implementation of its liquidation plans, although such threats do not frighten our people.

China is the first foreign country to send an official invitation to the PLO and to host Ahmed Al-Shugairi. China recognized the organization as the sole and legitimate representative of the Palestinian people and granted its office in Beijing all the diplomatic privileges granted to foreign embassies, which helped strengthen the organization's standing internationally.

The history of Palestinian-Chinese relations dates back to 1965, when China was the first non-Arab country to recognize the Palestine Liberation Organization, preceded by its declaration of support for the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people to liberation and return. As a reward for the liberation movements in the world and their support for the Palestinian armed struggle against colonialism. On March 17, 1965, a Palestinian delegation headed by the late Ahmed Al-Shugairi made an official visit to Beijing and held talks with Xuan Lai, then Chinese Prime Minister. He announced the establishment of a representative office for the Palestine Liberation Organization in Beijing. On November 20, 1988, following the declaration of independence, the People's Republic of China announced the recognition of the State of Palestine and the establishment of diplomatic relations with it.

In its infancy, the PLO paid more attention to military and political issues than diplomatic ones; In 1968, the Political Department of the Palestine Liberation Organization became the central department for foreign diplomatic work. The establishment of the Palestine Liberation Organization dates back to 1959, when Egypt submitted a proposal to the Council of the League of Arab States, but the decision to establish the PLO by the League of Arab States came out in 1963. In 1964, a general Palestinian conference in Jerusalem announced the establishment of the Palestine Liberation Organization. Ahmed Al-Shugairi was elected president of the organization. In 1969, Yasser Arafat, leader of the Fatah movement, was elected Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization. In 1974, the Arab Summit recognized the Palestine Liberation Organization as the "sole and legitimate representative of the Palestinian people" in all places of its presence, and the United Nations subsequently granted it observer status under a resolution of the United Nations General Assembly. The year 1974 witnessed a milestone for Palestinian diplomacy at the United Nations, as dozens of resolutions were adopted, including Resolutions 3237 and 3210, which affirmed the status of the Palestine Liberation Organization as the sole representative of the Palestinian people. February 1989 The PLO obtained recognition from 94 countries, and during the session of the UN Security Council in 1989, Palestine was granted the right to raise a point of order and speak on its behalf in an issue related to the Palestinian situation or the Middle East.

Between 1974-1982 the organization was engaged in diplomacy centered on gaining international recognition as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, and this period witnessed an increasing reliance on diplomatic work as a major direct tool for the political struggle. The Non-Aligned Movement accepted the PLO as a full member in 1976. The Organization of African Unity granted the PLO observer status. In 1977, the PLO established the Department of National and International Relations, charged with working with human rights organizations, non-ruling political parties, and all NGOs working for peace.

China was the first foreign country to host the head of the Palestine Liberation Organization (1965). It agreed to establish a diplomatic mission for the Palestine Liberation Organization in Beijing. After 6 years, the head of the Palestine Liberation Organization, Yasser Arafat, made his first public visit to the Soviet Union in 1971. The Palestine Liberation Organization also resorted to the United Nations to improve the legal status of the organization, and succeeded in 1970 by participating in the discussion of the "Palestine issue" in the Political Committee of the General Assembly. to the United Nations, followed by the adoption of two resolutions by the United Nations General Assembly affirming the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, namely Resolutions No. (2672 and 2628). The United Nations then recognized the Palestine Liberation Organization as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people in 1974.

In light of the alliances that we are witnessing in the region, and the public reconciliation between the historically hostile regimes, and after the convening of the Riyadh-Chinese Arab Summit for Cooperation and Development in December 2022, and after China’s sponsorship of restoring relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the return of Syria to the Arab League.

The visit of President Mahmoud Abbas comes to strengthen and sustain the strategic historical relations between Palestine and China. This is the fifth visit of President Mahmoud Abbas to Beijing since 2005, as the first visit was in 2005, then 2010 to the Shanghai Organization, and two visits at the state level in 2013 and 2017. The visit of the President comes To Beijing on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of the recognition of the State of Palestine and the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two friendly countries, and within the framework of the Palestinian and Chinese leaderships' keenness to promote and consolidate strong bilateral relations in all fields.

Regardless of the main purpose of the visit, whether to obtain financial or political support or to organize an international peace conference, China is a superpower and a permanent member of the UN Security Council. It is wise for the Palestinian decision-maker to plan diplomatically strategically, continue to build alliances, and expand representation in all arenas. Palestinian diplomacy must draw networking maps at the level of foreign policy and find interests and attractiveness in its relations. We live in a rapidly changing, pragmatic world that cannot afford to miss opportunities, especially in the field of foreign relations and United Nations diplomacy, regardless of the internal affairs of states and the accusing fingers they face from a unipolar system.
Dalal Erekat: Professor of Diplomacy and Strategic Planning, Faculty of Graduate Studies, Arab American University.

Every conflict issue, no matter how big it is, even if it reaches a state of large-scale conventional war, finds with its outbreak someone to intervene to stop it and find political solutions for it.

Even the Russian-Ukrainian war, whose highly flammable fire touches the limits of the nuclear threat, and which is a global war with direct participation in it and direct impact on its storms, found from its inception those who invest in proposing solutions to it, even if that seems impossible, for this is the law that governs the relationship of states to wars. .

The issue of conflict, which has produced wars and settlements, but is still continuing until it was described as chronic, is the Palestinian issue, which applies to it and the efforts that are being made to solve it, the saying; As soon as it takes one step forward, it takes two steps back, and once its fires are extinguished for a season or for several seasons, the fire resumes, multiplying in a way that makes it impossible to extinguish it.

And if we look at all the conflict issues that have produced wars, we will find that the Palestinian cause is the most serious effort to solve it, but it failed, and the last of which was when the whole universe agreed to solve it, starting from Madrid, passing through Oslo, and not ending with Camp David, despite Not only did the global attempt fail, but it returned the conflict to a fiercer and more complex state than it was in all its previous eras.

And now, while the whole world is preoccupied with the Ukrainian-Russian war, and the small wars scattered around it in the Middle East (Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, and others), there is no room left to address the chronic “Palestinian” issue, except through narrow and side margins, that might put out a fire. For several days, however, it does not prevent a wider fire.

The failure of global attempts to solve this issue generated an implicitly agreed-upon international desperation to close the political solution file with an agreed-upon reliance on relieving the permanent state of tension, through partial arrangements that take the form of a temporary calm, i.e. removing the detonator from the bomb for days, weeks, or even months, no more.

In the course of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, the law of state rule emerged, which is whenever the political file continues to be closed... files of mutual violence open up, because everything that happens between the two parties is governed by the "bomb and detonator" theory. How close their combination is to causing an explosion, and here is the case in Gaza and the West Bank confirming this. There is siege and war in Gaza, and in the West Bank, occupation, settlement and resistance... And between the two arenas the ball of fire moves.

The closed file... and the case of the "detonator and the bomb", their action is not limited to the narrow strip, where the geography of Palestine and Israel is. Rather, it extends to the wider ocean. Here, Israel warns of many fronts, active and latent. In the absence of opening the political file, pouring fuel on the fire is the always ready alternative.

The contractor to whom the solution process between Palestine and Israel was entrusted is the American. Who is currently frozen between a lack of desire and a lack of initiative, and in this case he has his own explanations and justifications, until he became a dilemma parallel to the original dilemma, and this produced what we are in now, “a wildfire waiting for a match to ignite.”

And the question; Is there really an impossibility to open the political file to the point of despair, or does necessity dictate opening it at the time when files were opened that were more difficult and dangerous, and then they are heading towards a solution? Objective observers see an opportunity, produced by the conciliatory developments that have accelerated in the region, in terms of effective cooling of the boiling boilers, in terms of the Arab consensus that was established at the Jeddah Summit on the Saudi-Arab-Islamic initiative for peace.

The only impediment to opening the political file is the American adaptation to Israel's unwillingness to accept the idea of ​​a political settlement with the Palestinians, as it moves forward in turning over the cards of violence and conflagration and squeezing time to impose a permanent fait accompli, in which a political settlement would be impossible.

And if the American adaptation led to the closure that led to it, reaching the point of despair, then what the region needs, and what the American interest is supposed to need, requires America in particular to leave the region of wavering between lack of desire and lack of initiative, to cooperate with the countries of the region in the only matter that is unanimously agreed upon. , which is the Arab peace initiative.

Opening the closed file has become necessary, not for the sake of the Palestinians and the Arabs, but for the sake of the region and its stability.

It was decided to convene the Israeli Supreme Council for Planning and Building, to publish bids for the construction of 4,560 settlement units in several West Bank settlements.

According to the Hebrew Channel 7, the council will publish today, Sunday, the construction bids that will reach this number out of 10,000 units, which were approved in a meeting of the Ministry of Housing in preparation for their construction.

According to the channel, this is the result of great efforts by the Israeli Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich.

Smotrich said: "The construction boom in the West Bank and throughout the country continues, exactly as we promised, and today we are taking another step to build thousands of units in the West Bank... The residents of West Bank settlements are no longer second-class citizens," offering his thanks to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and his army minister, Yoav Gallant, for their cooperation.

The head of the Commission for Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs, Major General Qadri Abu Bakr, revealed that the prisoners in Israeli prisons decided to postpone the Sunday strike, until the first of next July.

Abu Bakr said, in a statement distributed by the Commission, that a session brought together the prisoners with the Prisons Administration and the Israeli intelligence, and they presented their demands, which are to stop the administrative detention, and to prevent the detainees from being extended more than once or twice.

Abu Bakr explained that "the administrative detainees in the occupation prisons have reached more than 1,000 prisoners and detainees at the present time, noting that this number did not exceed 500 a year ago from now, which confirms the targeting and extremism of the new Israeli government, and its intentional increase in the number of Palestinian detainees."

Abu Bakr confirmed that many of the administratively sentenced prisoners are automatically renewed, and some of them have been in detention centers for 7 or 8 years, in addition to the re-arrest of those released after a week or two of their release by the occupation.

Abu Bakr indicated that the demands also included a review of administrative prisoners, including children and the elderly, to which the prison administration was somewhat responsive during the last session, prompting the prisoners to suspend their hunger strike, which was scheduled for today.

The postponement, according to Abu Bakr, comes in order to provide an opportunity to present their demands to Israeli officials and decide on them.

Regarding the possibility of the Israeli government responding to them in light of its recent measures against the prisoners, he said that the deadline is not long, and everyone seeks to avoid the hunger strike option, including the prisoners themselves, but if they are forced to do so, there is no other option.