The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) recently created a special commission of inquiry to investigate allegations of crimes of apartheid committed by the Israeli government against Palestinians. The fact-finding mission is being used to respond to allegations of serious violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law by Israel, according to the UNHRC.
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The Israeli-Palestinian conflict made recent headlines in May after Israeli forces launched devastating airstrikes on Gaza. This latest Gaza war was sparked after Israeli Defense Forces raided one of the holiest sites in Islam, the Al Aqsa Mosque, during the holy month of Ramadan. Israeli forces dispersed worshippers with flashbangs and rubber bullets, wounding nearly 300 people, reports The Guardian.
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The recent visit to Egypt by Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennet to meet with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on September 13 marks a key point in the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli struggle. This is especially noteworthy after the conflict in the Gaza Strip last May between Israel and Hamas.
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The world’s most pressing challenge is the rush to inoculate everyone against COVID-19 and achieve herd immunity. Some countries choose to exchange vaccines with foreign nations to reward compliant behavior, while others seek to help countries that do not have access to vaccines. The Soufan Center, a non-profit research center, calls this a “new arms race,” states France 24. Amid this “vaccine diplomacy” race, Israel is demonstrating its power to the international community and stands as number one in global vaccine rollouts. The country vaccinated almost 60 percent of its residents over 16 years old with the first dose, according to The Wall Street Journal.
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On November 19, the School of Diplomacy held a discussion on the Middle East Peace Plan with Dr. Riyad Mansour, Ambassador and Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine to the UN. Ambassador Mansour delivered remarks about the Palestinian perspective on the conflict in the Middle East and answered questions from attendees.
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United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made an unprecedented move last Thursday, November 19, when he became the first high-ranking U.S. diplomat to visit Israeli settlements in the West Bank and Golan Heights.
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On October 8, Saeb Erekat, a high-profile Palestinian diplomatic negotiator and Secretary General of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Executive Committee, announced that he tested positive for COVID-19. When his health worsened, Erekat was rushed to Hadassah Ein Kerem Medical Center, an Israeli hospital located in Jerusalem, reports Reuters.
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Fatah and Hamas reached a deal on Palestinian elections at the Palestinian Consulate in Istanbul last week, according to Al Jazeera. This has raised hopes that the factions can unite after years of animosity, facing a shared issue as Israel continues to threaten annexation while it normalizes relations with Arab nations.
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U.S. President Donald Trump announced on August 27 that Israel and the UAE would be normalizing relations after decades of tension. Reuters reports that the UAE and Israel first announced the move to normalize relations on August 13, but did not agree on a deal at that time. This deal is the result of Trump’s broader attempts at peace in the Middle East.
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Long awaited as one of his key foreign policy achievements, U.S. President Donald Trump’s Middle East Peace Plan was met with mixed reactions.
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