Israel

Palestinian Territories

Economics

Politics

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich ordered the cancellation of a waiver that enables cooperation between Israeli and Palestinian banks, just hours after the United Kingdom and four other countries sanctioned him and far-right national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, Reuters reported on June 10.

Israel, Palestinian Territories: Smotrich Cancels Waiver Allowing Israeli and Palestinian Bank Transactions

Israel-Hamas Conflict

Military & Security

The Israel Defense Forces intercepted the Gaza-bound Freedom Flotilla Coalition vessel, the Madleen, and 12 humanitarian activists onboard, including climate activist Greta Thunberg and a French member of the European Parliament, CNN reported on June 9.

Israel: IDF Intercepts Gaza-Bound Aid Flotilla

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his government had "activated" local clans in Gaza to counter Hamas, The Wall Street Journal reported on June 5. 

Israel, Gaza: Netanyahu Admits To Arming Criminal Gang To Offset Hamas

United States

The Palestinian militant group Hamas said the current U.S.-led proposal to pause the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza "fails to meet any of the just and legitimate demands of our people" but added that the group would continue to "study" the proposal without rejecting it, Reuters reported on May 30.

Israel, Gaza: Hamas Rejects U.S. Ceasefire Proposal But Does Not Abandon Talks

Israel's Defense Ministry said it had approved 22 new West Bank settlements, including a series of previously illegal settlements, The Times of Israel reported on May 29.

Israel, Palestinian Territories: Israel Approves 22 More West Bank Settlements

The U.S.-backed and Israeli-approved Gaza Humanitarian Foundation began distributing aid in the strip, marking the first significant alteration in aid deliveries since Israel cut off all supplies to Gaza in March, AP reported on May 26.

Israel, Gaza: Israeli-Dominated Organization Begins Distributing Aid in Gaza

Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar and several other top commanders were killed in southern Gaza on May 13 after the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) conducted an airstrike on a high-level meeting among the militant group's members, The Wall Street Journal reported on May 22.

Israel, Palestinian Territories: Hamas Leader Mohammed Sinwar Killed in Israeli Airstrike 

Lebanon

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas visited Beirut, marking his first trip to Lebanon since 2017, to discuss disarming Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon with President Joseph Aoun, France 24 reported on May 21. 

Lebanon: Palestinian President in Beirut To Discuss Disarming Palestinian Refugee Camps

Assessments

Iran

Israel's parliament meets March 20, 2023, in Jerusalem. A caretaker government would likely make concessions in Gaza, while a new government would likely take a different approach than Netanyahu toward Hezbollah and Iran.

A caretaker government would likely make concessions in Gaza, while a new government would likely take a different approach than Netanyahu toward Hezbollah and Iran.

How a Government Collapse Could Alter Israeli Foreign Policy

Kenya

South Africa

China

Poland

Global Trade

U.S.-China Relations

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended RANE articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: A U.S. Tariff Ruling, Israel's Opposition Seeks To Dissolve the Knesset

Columns

On Geopolitics

Iraq

Qatar

Saudi Arabia

Syria

Turkey

United Arab Emirates

Yemen

U.S. President Donald Trump (right) interacts with Oman Deputy Prime Minister Sayyid Asaad (second from right) as they prepare to pose for photos with leaders during the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Leaders' Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on May 14, 2025.

Energy

Despite Trump's recent sharp words on his predecessor's "forever wars," U.S. trade and energy interests will keep him engaged in the region, though in ways that rely more on economic and diplomatic leverage, as opposed to military campaigns.

Is the Era of U.S. Interventionism in the Middle East Over?

Israeli soldiers conduct a raid in the West Bank on March 19, 2025. 

Israel's newly approved plan to expand its offensive against Hamas will invite more Houthi attacks on its territory, worsen Gaza's humanitarian crisis, and fuel backlash both at home and abroad. 

To Break Hamas, Israel Prepares to Reoccupy Gaza

Palestinian men walk amidst the rubble of a destroyed building following an Israeli strike on a residential area of Gaza City on April 9, 2025. 

With the U.S.'s tacit support, Israel will likely keep expanding its military operations in Gaza in the hopes of pressuring both Hamas and local civilians there to leave, thereby making it easier to reoccupy the Strip.

To Secure Gaza, Israel Pursues a Strategy of Occupation and Displacement

Somalia

Egypt

Europe

Philippe Lazzarini (C), the commissioner general for the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, attends a humanitarian conference for Gaza in Cairo, Egypt, on Dec. 2, 2024, amid the continuing Israel-Hamas war.

Egypt's economic limitations will continue to restrain its assertiveness in foreign policy, constraining its ability to project power in the region.

Egypt's Economic Priorities Sideline Assertive Foreign Policy

Smoke billows during Israeli strikes west of Gaza City on March 18, 2025. 

In the coming days and weeks, Israel will likely carry out phased escalations and de-escalations to pressure Hamas into releasing the remaining hostages, returning Gaza to war by effectively collapsing the January ceasefire.

Large-Scale Israeli Airstrikes Plunge Gaza Back Into an Open-Ended Conflict

Canada

Mexico

Ukraine

A truck drives toward the Canada-U.S. border crossing in Blackpool, Canada, on Feb. 2, 2025.

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

The Weekly Rundown: An EU Summit on Ukraine, U.S. Tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China

Algeria

Libya

Morocco

Tunisia

Egyptians protest in front of the Rafah border crossing, rejecting the proposed displacement of Palestinians in Gaza to Egypt and Jordan, on Jan. 31, 2025. 

Pro-Palestinian protests will persist regionwide amid allegations of Israeli ceasefire violations, but Morocco and Egypt will avoid taking action that could jeopardize their access to Israeli weapons and energy.

How Will North African Governments Respond to Ardent Pro-Palestinian Sentiment?

Armenia

Azerbaijan

Russia

Crowds of Palestinians gather to receive food outside a U.N. aid distribution center in the Gazan city of Deir al-Balah on Nov. 2, 2024.

Social Issues

The displacement of any Palestinians from the Gaza Strip will further erode post-World War II norms against population transfers, laying the groundwork for future global conflicts.

Trump's Gaza Plan Risks Further Eroding Global Constraints on Population Removals

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Ethiopia

Rwanda

Sri Lanka

Damage on Feb. 13 in the Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza.

The Weekly Rundown: Mideast Ceasefires and Arab Gaza Proposals, the AU Summit

Sub-Saharan Africa

Tanzania

Americas

Brazil

Colombia

Cuba

Haiti

Nicaragua

Venezuela

Jordan

Cambodia

Indonesia

North Macedonia

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Serbia

Albania

Kosovo

South Asia

Afghanistan

Bangladesh

India

The lobby of the headquarters for the U.S. Agency for International Development is seen on Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington, D.C. 

Cuts to U.S.-funded humanitarian and development programs could worsen global health outcomes, destabilize security environments, accelerate democratic backsliding, and create opportunities for rival powers to expand their influence.

The Global Implications of Trump's Foreign Aid Cuts

The Palestinian Territories comprise two sections of the former mandate of Palestine: the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. The two small areas are separated from one another by Israel, which controls most of their frontiers. Jordan borders the West Bank on the east, while Egypt lies to the west of the Gaza Strip. The West Bank is a hilly, warm country that enjoys sufficient rainfall to support agriculture, but because the Gaza Strip receives little precipitation due to its location next to the dry Sinai Desert, its economy has traditionally relied on fishing and trade. The territories' only natural border is the Jordan River on the eastern edge of the West Bank.    The Palestinian Territories lack a clear demographic core, although the lands have a symbolic heart: the city of Jerusalem, which Palestinians view as their capital.    The Palestinian Territories evolved over time. After Israel gained its independence in 1948, Jordan annexed the West Bank while Egypt took control of Gaza. After the Six Day War in 1967, however, Israel occupied both territories. The occupation strengthened Palestinian identity, and members of the community eventually came to regard Gaza and the West Bank as components of a united proto-state.      But due to their size and domination by Israel, the Palestinian Territories have not succeeded in achieving state status. The territories, meanwhile, are not only divided geographically but also politically, as the Islamist party Hamas rules Gaza, while the more nationalist and secularist Fatah controls the West Bank. In addition to overcoming the lack of unity, the Palestinian Territories must convince Israel's allies to allow the entity to gain autonomy and eventually achieve independence. Ultimately, internal political divisions and the need to pursue diplomacy to become a sovereign state represent the core geographic challenges for the Palestinian Territories.  

Israel's Survival Strategy

The Pulse of Political Islam

SITUATION REPORTS

Israel, Palestinian Territories: Smotrich Cancels Waiver Allowing Israeli and Palestinian Bank Transactions

Israel: IDF Intercepts Gaza-Bound Aid Flotilla

Israel, Gaza: Netanyahu Admits To Arming Criminal Gang To Offset Hamas

Israel, Gaza: Hamas Rejects U.S. Ceasefire Proposal But Does Not Abandon Talks

Israel, Palestinian Territories: Israel Approves 22 More West Bank Settlements

Israel, Gaza: Israeli-Dominated Organization Begins Distributing Aid in Gaza

Israel, Palestinian Territories: Hamas Leader Mohammed Sinwar Killed in Israeli Airstrike

Lebanon: Palestinian President in Beirut To Discuss Disarming Palestinian Refugee Camps

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