News:

As winter begins to hit, Gaza's only power plant is up and running again, thanks to fuel from Qatar. (New York Times/Xinhua/Reuters)

40,000 Palestinians in Gaza flee their homes due to flooding. (AP/Los Angeles Times)

Gaza's port suffers $100,000 in storm related damage. (Ma'an)

Israeli occupation forces shoot and wound a young Palestinian in Gaza near the Israeli border. (Xinhua)

A new poll shows that, although they are pessimistic, a majority of Palestinians are in favor of talks with Israel. (Palestinian Center For Public Opinion)

Sources say Pres. Abbas has declined, for now, Sec. Kerry's proposal he meet with PM Netanyahu. (Xinhua/Times of Israel)

The Israeli government approves pending legislation penalizing foreign-funded liberal NGOs. (Xinhua)

An Israeli ministerial committee also approved a bill requiring a steep two thirds majority on any Jerusalem compromise. (Jerusalem Post)

Israeli forces exchange fire with Lebanese soldiers after an Israeli sergeant is killed near the border (New York Times/Xinhua/AFP)

The Israeli military shoots two Lebanese in the skirmishing, and blames Lebanon. (AP)

Lebanese, Israeli and UN officials meet to discuss the violence, as neither side seems interested in a broader conflict. (Reuters/Ha'aretz)

Recent successes in promoting settlement boycotts give new life to the boycott movement. (AFP)

Former MK Azmi Bishara may be trying to broker Hamas-Fatah negotiations. (Times of Israel)

A prominent Saudi prince criticizes the Obama administration, particularly on insufficient Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts. (New York Times)

A Palestinian citizen of Israel almost becomes the world kickboxing champion. (Ha'aretz)

Snows disrupt this year's pilgrimages to Bethlehem. (The Media Line)

An outsourcing call center is providing new jobs in Bethlehem. (BBC)

Palestinians are teaching the art of pickle-making in Saudi Arabia. (Arab News)

33 more Iraqis are killed in a string of attacks throughout the country. (AP/New York Times)

An Iraqi official and his family are killed by assailants. (New York Times)

The death toll in a Syrian government military bombing attack on Aleppo rises to 76, including 28 children. (Reuters/AP/AFP)

The Syrian government may have continued to use chemical weapons even as the West was threatening retaliation. (Foreign Policy)

Moderate Syrian rebel leaders vow to protect journalists. (AP)

The UN seeks $6.5 billion in aid for Syrian refugees next year. (Reuters)

Syrian refugees in Lebanon and elsewhere are facing a bitter winter. (AP)

Yemen's parliament votes to ban the US use of drones in its country. (Xinhua)

The Egyptian government faces an opposition badly divided between Islamists and liberals. (Washington Post)

Turkey's deputy PM says relations with Israel are important and reparable. (Times of Israel)

Tunisian parties finally agree on a technocratic caretaker PM. (BBC)

Qatar's new emir seems to be shifting focus to domestic rather than foreign policy. (The National)

Commentary:

ATFP Pres. Ziad J. Asali says Israel needs to enforce the law against violent extremist "price tag" hooligans. (Ha'aretz)

ATFP Executive Director Ghaith Al-Omari says there already are emerging effective models of Arab-American engagement. (Al Arabiya)

ATFP Senior Fellow Hussein Ibish says the occupation structures a relationship of violence between Israelis and Palestinians. (The National)

Charles Bronfman and Peter Joseph say the US will have to find ways to promote peace and strengthen Israel's security simultaneously. (Jerusalem Post)

Amira Hass says Palestinian rage is contained for now but is about to boil over. (Ha'aretz)

Rami Khouri suggests five points for Kerry to keep in mind on Israeli-Palestinian peace. (The Daily Star)

Betty Herschman says both sides are responsible for, and must curb, violence in Jerusalem. (Jerusalem Post)

Mattia Toaldo, Fatima Ayub, Hugh Lovatt, and Dimi Reider conduct a "stress test" on the state of the two state solution. (ECFR)

Steven Klein asks if foreign troops will be necessary to secure an Israeli-Palestinian peace. (Ha'aretz)

Moshe Arens says negotiations will not bring about an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. (Ha'aretz)

Dave Sharma says innovative forms of Israeli-Palestinian cooperation may be paving the path to peace. (Times of Israel)

Oudeh Basharat asks, where is the Israeli de Klerk? (Ha'aretz)

Avi Weiss explains why he once picketed Nelson Mandela for supporting Palestinians. (The Forward)

Paul Scham says the demand for Palestinian recognition of Israel as a "Jewish state" makes no sense. (Partners for Progressive Israel)

Jerome Siegel says there are ways of helping address refugee issues while maintaining Israel's "Jewish character." (Foreign Policy)

Abeer Ayyoub describes the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza without sufficient electricity this winter. (Ha'aretz)

Josh Nason points out Hamas has suffered an unprecedented series of defeats, but is still hanging on in Gaza. (Tablet)

Avi Issacharoff asks if Hamas' last resort is going to once again be Iran. (Times of Israel)

Ariel Ben Solomon asks what's next for Israel's Bedouins now the mass relocation plan is postponed. (Jerusalem Post)

The Daily Star says the Obama administration's policy on Syria is incomprehensible. (The Daily Star)

Ali Hashem says Qatar is retooling its Syria policy. (Al Monitor)

James Traub says the rise of Al Qaeda in Syria has been a complete game changer for everybody. (Foreign Policy)

David Ignatius says Iran wants a nuclear deal, but negotiations will be tough. (Washington Post)

Abdullah Al-Otaibi says the GCC must adapt to the new strategic situation in the region. (Asharq Al Awsat)

Mohammad Alrumaihi says the debate on Gulf unification is gathering steam. (Gulf News)

Saad Dosari says Oman's opposition to intensified Gulf unity should prompt GCC soul-searching. (Arab News)

The National says Tunisia's selection of a new caretaker PM is a small but necessary step forward. (The National)

Ayesha Almazroui says individual efforts can save many Syrian lives. (The National)

David Miliband says more can be done for refugees. (The Daily Star)