News:

Chancellor Merkel meets with PM Netanyahu and both express hope to advance peace talks.(Reuters/Xinhua)

Merkel says Germany is obliged to follow EU guidelines on the labelling of goods produced in Israeli settlements. (Ha’aretz/The Jerusalem Post)

The Palestinian presidency says Jordan is not an alternative homeland for the Palestinians. (Xinhua)

Israeli occupation forces storm Jerusalem’s Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount to disperse a protest, arresting three Palestinians. (AP/Xinhua/Ma’an/Ha’aretz)

Israeli warplanes reportedly launch two raids near the Lebanese-Syrian border. (AP/The New York Times/Ha’aretz)

Netanyahu refuses to say whether Israel carried out the airstrikes. (AP/The Jerusalem Post)

Sec. Kerry and Treasury Sec. Lew will speak at the annual AIPAC conference. (JTA)

Fatah is still waiting on an answer from Hamas regarding a recent proposal for national reconciliation. (Ma’an)

An Israeli right wing group starts an “anti-Jewish state” campaign. (The Jerusalem Post)

Israel passes a bill to distinguish between Muslim and Christian Arab citizens for purposes of employment. (Ha’aretz)

Hamas allegedly planned to bomb a major route linking Jerusalem to Tel Aviv. ( The Times of Israel)

UNRWA says Palestinians in the Yarmouk camp in Syria are “traumatized.” (AP)

The Syrian war stirs a new US debate on cyberattacks.(The New York Times)

The leader of the Nusra Front in Syria gives ISIS an ultimatum. (Reuters)

Anger is spreading through Lebanon’s Sunni community toward the country’s military. (AP)

Iran signs a deal to sell Iraq arms and munitions worth $195 million. (Reuters/The National)

Pres. Mansour asks Housing Minister Mahlab to form a new Egyptian government. (Xinhua/AFP)

Seven Egyptians are found dead in Libya. (The New York Times)

Kuwait launches a bid to end a standoff between Egypt and Qatar ahead of the Arab Summit. (Gulf News)

The Turkish opposition demands an investigation into PM Erdogan for alleged corruption. (AP)

Commentary:

Raanan Eliaz says Israel’s challenge is to work closely with the emerging German political generation. (Ha’aretz)

Simon Shiffer says Israel cannot deny the Germans the right to criticize its behavior towards the Palestinians. (Ynet)

Willem-Gert Aldershoff and Michel Waelbroeck say EU settlement guidelines do not constitute a boycott of Israel. (Ha’aretz)

The Jordan Times says King Abdullah is angry about rumors that Jordan will be a homeland for the Palestinians. (The Jordan Times)

Hassan Barari says Jordanian political forces will not stop talking about the “alternative homeland for the Palestinian people” due to parochial interests (The Jordan Times)

Jonathan Cook accuses Israelis of living in a “large bubble of denial.”(The National)

Cesar Chelala says Israel’s treatment of Palestinian children undermines its democratic principles and continues to perpetuate the Arab-Israeli conflict. (The Daily Star)

Ha’aretz says Economy Minister’s Bennett obsession is to turn the Arab population in Israel into second-class citizens. (Ha’aretz)

Beth Kissileff says its up to US Jews to make more of an effort to understand Jewish identity in Israel. (Ha’aretz)

Doyle McManus says Pres. Obama may soon face a turning point in Syria. (The Los Angeles Times)

HA Hellyer says all journalists in Egypt should be freed. (Al Arabiya)

Peter Jenkins says US-Iranian nuclear negotiations are finally dealing with facts, instead of assumptions. (The Daily Star)

Faisal Al Yafai says the Arab world’s concern over Iran’s nuclear programme is a symptom, not the cause, of the regional distrust of Iranian intentions. (The National)

Dennis Blair and Michael Hagee say if the US is to remain prosperous and secure, more significant progress should be made toward ending its oil dependence (The New York Times)

Richard Cohen says as the world is looking for guidance not only does the US refuse to be its “policemen” but will not be its ”hall monitor.”  (The Washington Post)

Hussein Ibish says Russia is an unacceptable ally for the Arabs. (Now Media)

The Los Angeles Times says Qatar’s World Cup preparations should not include abusing its workers. (The Los Angeles Times)

The National says Iraq’s arms deal with Iran has political repercussions far beyond its monetary value. (The National)

Elif Shafak says the “tempest of fear” in Turkey is reflected through the recent proliferation of conspiracy theories. (The New York Times)

Dalia Ghanem-Yazbeck says Algeria’s upcoming elections demonstrate the steady decline of Islamist parties. (The Daily Star)