News:

Israeli airstrikes kill five Palestinians in Gaza. (Ma’an/PNN)

Palestinian militants fire more rockets at Ashdod. (Ha’aretz/Jerusalem Post)

Hamas militants kill 18 alleged Palestinian collaborators. (AP/New York Times/Ma’an/Jerusalem Post/Times of Israel)

Britain, France and Germany are pushing for a new UN resolution on Gaza. (AFP/JTA/Ha’aretz/Jerusalem Post)

Israel is examining the option of renewing the Egypt-mediated ceasefire talks. (Ha’aretz)

Hamas leader Haniyeh says there will be no ceasefire until the Gaza siege ends. (Ynet)

Pres. Abbas and Hamas leader Meshaal will hold a second meeting with the Emir of Qatar. (Ma’an)

Abbas reportedly castigated Meshaal over an alleged Hamas plot to overthrow the PA in the West Bank at yesterday’s meeting. (Times of Israel)

The Jerusalem Post looks at the pros and cons of assassinating Hamas commanders. (Jerusalem Post)

The cost of Israel’s “Operation Protective Edge”reaches $60 million a day. (Ha’aretz)

A poll indicates most Israeli Jews are opposed to intermarriage. (Ha’aretz)

Arab states and Israel are likely to clash at next month's annual meeting of the IAEA. (Reuters)

Gen. Dempsey says IS cannot be defeated unless the US and a coalition of partners confront it head-on in Syria. (AP/New York Times/The National)

Ayatollah al-Sistani urges Iraqi leaders to swiftly form a new government. (AP)

Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga forces launch an operation to retake Jalawla from IS fighters. (The National)

At least 30 people are killed when a Shi'ite Muslim militia opened fired inside an Iraqi Sunni mosque. (Reuters)

IS militants stone a man to death in Mosul. (Reuters)

The UN says the death toll in Syria has risen to more than 191,000 people. (AP/Reuters/NEw York Times)

Pres. Erdogan says FM Davutoglu will become the new prime minister. (Xinhua/AP)

Commentary:

The Jordan Times says the UNSC must force Israelis and Palestinians to achieve a ceasefire. (Jordan Times)

Asmaa al-Ghoul says Palestinians in Gaza are dreading the return of war. (Al-Monitor)

Zvi Bar’el explains why Egypt won’t let Turkey be Gaza’s hero. (Ha’aretz)

Antony Lerman says Israel’s embrace of ever more right-wing nationalist politics has stirred a crisis among Diaspora Jews. (New York Times)

Ha’aretz says PM Netanyahu must resume negotiations with the Palestinians. (Ha’aretz)

George Hishmeh says British and American media differ in their assessment of the Gaza war. (Jordan Times)

The New York Times looks at the question of ransoms. (New York Times)

The Los Angeles Times asks if in the wake of James Foley’s execution, should the US pay ransoms. (Los Angeles Times)

David Ignatius says the US is on the right track against IS. (Washington Post)

Amir Taher says IS is a “threat to humanity.” (Asharq al-Awsat)

Alex Massie says British intelligence can’t prevent men like James Foley’s killer from fighting in Syria or coming home. (Foreign Policy)

Abdul Rahman Al Rashed say IS has now declared a war against the radical group the Surooris. (Al Arabiya)

Eyad Abu Shakra says the crisis in Syria and Iraq are joined “at the hip.” (Asharq al-Awsat)

Shane Harris asks if Iraq’s Baathists could help win Iraq back. (Foreign Policy) 

The CSM says Iraq’s newly designated PM al-Abadi can heal the religious and ethnic divisions. (Christian Science Monitor)

The Daily Star says the task of the political and military opposition in Syria is to contribute to a solution. (Daily Star)

The National says addressing terrorism requires the debunking of extremist ideas. (The National)

News:

Fighting continues between Israel and Hamas militants. (AP/Washington Post/The National)

Egypt proposes a new ceasefire plan. (Reuters/AFP/PNN/JTA/Times of Israel)

The Gaza death toll today reaches eight following Israeli airstrikes. (Ma’an)

Gaza militants fire more rockets into Israel. (Ha’aretz/Ynet)

Israeli airstrikes target the Rafah crossing. (Ma’an)

Hamas leader Meshaal vows to exclusively aim only at Israeli military targets if his group can get more sophisticated weapons. (JTA)

A Palestinian teenager describes his ordeal as a captive of the Israeli military. (New York Times)

A poll indicates the majority of Palestinians in Gaza support peace but oppose disarmament. (Ma’an)

Pres. Abbas will reportedly soon appeal to the international community to set a deadline for Israel to end its occupation. (AP/Times of Israel)

Gaza’s water delivery drivers fear death. (AFP)

A Palestinian teenager in the West Bank dies from wounds sustained during clashes with Israeli occupation forces. (Ma’an)

Hamas’ public executions of at least 22 Palestinians has sparked outrage in the West Bank. (The Media Line)

Israel is turning to other arms sources amid uncertainty of US and EU sales. (Ha’aretz)

UN Human Rights Chief Pillay condemns “appalling and widespread” crimes committed by IS. (Reuters/AP)

Iraq’s PM-designate al-Abadi calls on the country's numerous militias and tribes to come under government control. (AP)

Qatar denies funding IS. (AP)

IS militants seize an air base in northern Syria. (Reuters)

The Syrian government says its ready to work with any state to fight IS militants. (Reuters/Xinhua/The National)

The Al-Nusra Front frees an American writer missing since 2012. (Reuters/New York Times)

Academics and archaeologists fight to save Syria’s artifacts. (New York Times/Washington Post/The National)

Commentary:

Hussein Ibish looks at the Palestinian unity agreement in the context of the Gaza conflict. (MEPC)

Fahed Fanek says the PA should oversee Gaza reconstruction efforts. (Jordan Times)

Rami Khouri asks if there is a better option that Israelis and Palestinians could explore to end their “mutually destructive militarism.” (Daily Star)

Aaron David Miller looks at the dysfunctional relationship between PM Netanyahu and Pres. Obama. (Los Angeles Times)

Uri Savir says Israel’s policies are creating a de facto binational state. (Al-Monitor)

Suha Arraf says Palestinian citizens of Israel have a right to define their own identity. (Ha’aretz)

Hussein Ibish says the US is at war with IS and this will only intensify and spread. (The National)

The Daily Star says the US acts in Syria and Iraq only when it believes its direct interests are at stake. (Daily Star)

The New York Times says defeating IS will require an organized and longer-term response involving a broad coalition of nations. (New York Times)

Abdullah Bani Ali says Jordan is worried over IS’s ever growing threat. (The National)

Amer Al Sabaileh says IS expansion is still a regional threat. (Jordan Times)

Abdul Rahman Al Rashed says former PM Maliki is giving bad advice to Al-Abadi. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The National says Libya requires a fresh start free from the militias. (The National)

Salman Aldossary asks if the Gulf countries will lose Qatar. (Asharq al-Awsat)

News:

Israeli airstrikes destroy two Gaza high-rise apartment buildings. (AP/New York Times/Ma’an/PNN/Ynet/The National)

The Palestinian death toll in Gaza today reaches six. (Ma’an)

Palestinian militants fire more rockets into Israel, hitting a kindergarten in Ashdod. (Ha’aretz/Jerusalem Post)

Pres. Abbas will hold an emergency meeting in Ramallah to discuss initiatives to end the war in Gaza. (Ma’an)

Abbas is reportedly considering a broad international strategy beyond the US led peace process. (New York Times)

Israel is considering the new Egyptian ceasefire proposal. (Ma’an)

Hamas says the language of the Egyptian ceasefire proposal is acceptable. (Jerusalem Post/Ynet)

A Fatah official says “hidden hands” prevented an agreement between Israel and the Palestinians. (Ha’aretz)

Hamas leader Meshaal is said to be the last obstacle to a cease-fire. (Ha’aretz)

Gen. Allen will meet with Israeli officials to discuss the possible renewal of peace talks once the Gaza operation ends. (Times of Israel)

PA security officials are questioning the nonprofit of former PM Fayyad over its campaign to help Palestinians in Gaza. (Ha’aretz/Times of Israel)  

The Palestinian planned city of Rawabi is awaiting for Israel’s approval for water. (New York Times)

Palestinian athlete from Gaza Nader Masri can no longer run. (New York Times)

A poll indicates PM Netanyahu’s approval rating in Israel has plunged to 38 percent. (JTA)

Qatar is reportedly seeking to free more American hostages in Syria. (Reuters)

The US is preparing military options including surveillance flights, to pressure IS in Syria. (Reuters/AP/New York Times/The National) 

Iran is supplying weapons and ammunition to the Iraqi Kurdish forces. (Reuters/The National)

VP Biden calls for the formation of a new Iraqi government. (AP/Washington Post/Xinhua)

A car bombing in Baghdad kills at least 11 people. (AP)

Egypt and the UAE reportedly recently launched joint air strikes on Islamist-allied militias trying to take control of Tripoli. (New York Times)

UN Envoy Leon says he opposes foreign intervention in Libya. (AP)
 

Commentary:

ATFP Exec. Dr. Ghaith Al-Omari and Mara Rudman say reconstruction implementation in Gaza should be led by the PA. (The Hill)

Jean-Pierre Filiu says if there is ever to be Israeli-Palestinian peace, Gaza will be the foundation and the keystone.(New York Times)

Sharif Nashashibi says lifting the siege in Gaza is not enough, Israel must end the occupation. (The National)

Adnan Abu Amer says Hamas is worried about the PA’s return to Gaza. (Al-Monitor)

Shlomi Eldar says Abbas is is no position to negotiate for Hamas. (Al-Monitor)

The Media Line interviews EU Amb. to Israel Lars Faaborg-Andersen. (The Media Line)

Joanne Feinberg Goldstein says the war in Gaza is the Jewish American’s “Vietnam war.” (Ha’aretz)

Fiyaz Mughal says Muslim-Jewish relations must confront the Palestinian issue. (Ha’aretz)

Hussein Ibish says attacking IS, in the long run, is tantamount to attacking the Assad dictatorship. (Now)

Hassan Barari says the US is playing into Pres. Assad’s hands. (Jordan Times)

Aaron David Miller says the US should not expand its mission to strike IS in Syria. (Foreign Policy)

Diana Moukalled asks if after the death of James Foley will the Syrian suffering continue to worsen out of sight of the media. (Asharq al-Awsat)

Mohammad Bazzi says Muqtada Al Sadr is emerging as an unlikely kingmaker in Iraq. (The National)