Israel is accelerating its strategy of forced displacement of Palestinian communities and permanent control of the territory. In the West Bank, a steady campaign of land seizure, harassment, and violence carried out by Israeli settlers and backed by the state makes normal life impossible until Palestinian families are pushed out. The Palestinian Bedouin village of Ras Ain al-Auja is the latest example. After sustained attacks and the establishment of a settler outpost, residents have been forced to leave, and residents are calling it “another Nakba.”
In Gaza, the U.S. is promoting “Phase 2” of the ceasefire, but on the ground, the population is still trapped in ruins, facing ongoing deprivation, and continuing violent attacks by Israeli forces. Israel’s new restrictions on international organizations are designed to choke off humanitarian work and suppress solidarity. And in Washington, the pro-Israel lobby is being reorganized, not weakened. J Street is positioned as a key vehicle for enforcing Democratic Party discipline on Palestine, even as Netanyahu signals a long-term shift in how Israel wants U.S. support structured.
Catch-up with our coverage from the last week.
📹 Video
Who is Bari Weiss? Watch our latest explainer video about The ‘Zionist Fanatic’ taking over CBS News.
🇵🇸 Gaza
The Trump administration announced the start of “Phase 2” of the Gaza ceasefire with talk of demilitarization, reconstruction, and a technocratic governance committee under a U.S.-mandated “Board of Peace.” But as Qassam Muaddi explains, none of that changes the reality Palestinians are living under. Gaza remains divided along the “Yellow Line,” Israel has already set a new status quo of slow starvation and periodic strikes, and the U.S. has shown it won’t (or can’t) force Israel to comply with even the basic terms of Phase 1.
Read more → The U.S. has announced ‘Phase 2’ of the Gaza ceasefire. Here’s why it doesn’t matter for Palestinians.
Tareq Hajjaj reports a harrowing story that shows what’s behind talks of “ceasefire.” People are still dying from conditions created by siege and destruction. Ahmad was married for three days when a wall collapsed onto their tent during a winter storm, killing his wife Walaa, and leaving him psychologically shattered.
Read more → How a winter storm in Gaza killed his wife
🇵🇸 West Bank
2025 saw an unprecedented wave of forced displacement in rural Palestinian communities, driven by settlers backed by the army, including at least 13 communities wiped off the map, affecting 190 families (1,090 people). Qassam Muaddi situates this as a tightening annexation strategy that isolates Palestinian population centers while expanding and legalizing settlement outposts.
Read more → The past year has seen an unprecedented displacement of Palestinian communities in the West Bank
Ras Ain al-Auja was one of the largest Bedouin villages in the West Bank. Now most of its 120 families have been pushed out after sustained settler attacks, in what residents describe plainly as “another Nakba.”
Read more → Ras Ain al-Auja, the latest Palestinian village in the West Bank wiped off the map by Israel
🇮🇱 Aid and solidarity
Israel’s move to cancel the registration of 37 international aid organizations is being described by humanitarian groups as a devastating blow across Palestine, “cutting off a lifeline” in Gaza, and undermining local programs and services far beyond the territory.
Read more → Israeli ban on 37 aid organizations expected to have devastating impacts across Palestine
Jennifer Bing of the American Friends Service Committee explains that the new Israeli registration rules are designed to block aid and punish political speech, by allowing Israel to deny registration based on criticism of Israeli policy; effectively severing both material support and international witness.
Read more → Israel is attempting to block both aid and solidarity through its new ban on international organizations
🇺🇸 U.S. politics and Israel’s strategy shift
Our founder and Senior Editor, Philip Weiss, argues that as AIPAC becomes more toxic among Democrats, J Street is positioning itself as the “responsible” enforcer of pro-Israel orthodoxy, trying to make liberals “love Israel again,” even as the party’s base wants distance from the Gaza genocide.
Read more → J Street is the new AIPAC in the Democratic Party
Netanyahu has been telling the press he wants to “taper off” U.S. military aid over the next decade. Michael Arria reports on the scale of current aid and how U.S. hawks like Lindsey Graham are responding.
Read more → Netanyahu says he wants to end U.S. military aid to Israel in the next 10 years
Mitchell Plitnick digs into the logic behind the move, including how shifting away from grant-based aid could help Israel avoid certain legal constraints tied to U.S. assistance, while keeping arms purchases and the political economy of weapons flowing.
Read more → Why Netanyahu says he wants to stop U.S. aid to Israel
It seems Trump has invited Putin to join his absurd Board of Peace. Or should that be Bored of Peace?