News of a possible rapprochement between Egypt and the Gaza Strip is welcomed by the Palestinian population of the besieged territory. While one motivation for the Egyptian shift may be economic, analysts in Gaza believe that Abdel-Fatah el-Sisi’s government may be seeking to undermine Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas as well.

One-month-old Jowan Abu al-Qi’an will most likely be the last person born in the village of Umm al-Hiran in the Negev desert. The house that her family built out of stone will be demolished, and the Bedouin village will soon be razed to the ground to make way for the new Jewish community “Hiran.” “We’d like to live together. We told them that it’s OK for us to live with Jews, but the court said no. This place is just for Jewish people,” Umm al-Hiran resident Hassan Abu al-Qi’an says.

John Kerry described Israeli government contempt for the White House yesterday: “We issue a warning today when we see a new settlement announced. Nothing happens. It’s ignored, a new settlement goes up. New units, new sales.”

Nearly 2/3 of Americans would not oppose establishment by UN of a Palestinian state, and Democratic numbers in support of Palestine are surging, with 60 percent supporting sanctions against Israel for settlements and 55 percent saying Israel has too much influence in U.S.

The U.S. invasion of Iraq and its consequences for American veterans partly explain why they supported Trump. The war was hatched in Washington, not the Rust Belt.

Bill passed by the Senate to expand Dept of Education’s anti-discrimination rules to include the 3 D’s of Israel speech — demonization, delegitimization and double standard — “will have a definitive chilling effect on campus organizing for Palestinian human rights around the country,” says Gabi Kirk of UC Davis.

“We are dedicating this memorial in honor of two young lives that have been snuffed out unjustly,” said Reverend Graylan Hagler of DC, dedicating a shrine in Aida refugee camp in Bethlehem to Tamir Rice, 12, and Abd al-Rahman Obeidallah, 13, killed within months of each other by authorities.

Minnesota Congressman Keith Ellison pretends to be “more of a Zionist than Herzl, Ben-Gurion and Begin combined,” but if you go back to his record, “he is clearly an anti-Semite, an anti-Israel individual.” Haim Saban smears the DNC chair candidate at a fancy Washington dinner.

The day after Donald Trump won the presidential election, I received an email from one of my undocumented students in my Junior English class. “I’m scared. I don’t have anything to return to in my home country, and the U.S. has become my home.” Liz Rose meditates on the shifting meaning of home during a crisis of leadership.

Surfing enthusiasts in Gaza hope to meet other surfers from around the world and participate in global competitions, but Israeli travel restrictions prevent them from leaving the besieged strip. Israel also bans the fiberglass material needed for surfboards, which makes the sport difficult.