News:

Palestinian negotiators reportedly offer to resign over planned new Israeli settlement activity, but Pres. Abbas is unlikely to accept. (New York Times/Ma'an)

Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat denies offering to resign. (YNet)

Sec. Kerry will meet with Abbas in Bethlehem next week. (Jerusalem Post)

An Israeli attack on a Gaza smuggling tunnel reportedly kills four Hamas militants. (AP/Reuters/Xinhua)

Five Israeli soldiers are injured in Gaza. (YNet/Times of Israel)

Palestinians say Israel is preparing to destroy the homes of 15,000 Palestinian residents of occupied East Jerusalem. (Ma'an)

Israeli occupation officials are trying to control pollution in the West Bank. (Christian Science Monitor)

Settlers destroy 300 newly planted olive trees in Qalqiliya in the occupied West Bank. (Ma'an)

The Israeli military withdraws from 13 communities near the Gaza border. (Xinhua)

The main Gaza power plant once again stops functioning due to lack of fuel supplies. (Xinhua)

Israel reportedly attacks a shipment of Russian missiles inside Syria, that were perhaps bound for Hezbollah. (AP/YNet/Ha'aretz)

The US announces that Israel will be the first foreign country to receive the new V-22 Osprey military aircraft. (Los Angeles Times/Ha'aretz)

Economic and military ties between Israel and India are expanding. (The Media Line)

PM al-Maliki is in Washington seeking support amid a growing security crisis. (New York Times/AP/Christian Science Monitor)

Sec. Kerry is visiting Saudi Arabia and other countries in an effort to smooth relations. (New York Times/AP)

Syrian troops recapture a key town in the north from rebels. (AP)

Syria may be seeking to retain control of a small number of chemical weapons factories. (Foreign Policy)

Egypt declares a state of emergency before the trial of former Pres. Morsi. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Commentary:

Yuval Diskin says to prevent another Palestinian intifada, Israel must encourage hope and prisoner releases part of that. (YNet)

Yossi Verter questions whether PM Netanyahu's coalition can survive infighting over a Palestinian deal. (Ha'aretz)

Yoel Marcus says, in order to make peace, Netanyahu must purge his cabinet of extremists. (Ha'aretz)

Elisheva Goldberg is sure that there was a deal between Netanyahu and Bennett trading prisoner release for more settlements. (Daily Beast/Open Zion)

The Jerusalem Post dismisses the idea that Israeli settlements are an obstacle to peace. (Jerusalem Post)

Shaul Arieli says Israel's founders knew partition is necessary for it to be Jewish, but the Greater Israel movement threatens this. (Ha'aretz)

The Economist doubts an interim agreement will really advance Israeli-Palestinian peace. (The Economist)

Hillel Halkin says there's nothing wrong with Jewish Americans putting Israel first. (The Forward)

Yaakov Lappin says Israel faces daily dilemmas about what to do regarding Syria and Hezbollah's arms supplies. (Jerusalem Post)

Zvi Bar'el says as the US is moving away from Egypt, Russia is moving in. (Ha'aretz)

Rye Druzin says the rift between the US and Gulf states is expanding. (The Media Line)

Marwan Kabalan says US Gulf allies need reassurances. (Gulf News)

Aaron David Miller asks if the US really has a special relationship with Saudi Arabia, and if so, is it worth keeping. (Foreign Policy)

Paul Danahar says the US left Iraq a broken mess. (BBC)

Asharq Al-Awsat interviews Egyptian FM Fahmi. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Manuel Almeida says PM Erdoğan is his own worst enemy. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Andrew Parasiliti interviews Ali Al-Moussawi, a top advisor to PM Al-Maliki. (Al Monitor)

Palash Ghosh profiles the large Palestinian community in Chile. (IB Times)

Uri Avnery says as he turns 90 he still advocates Palestinian statehood and believes it can happen in his lifetime. (The Independent)

News:

Pres. Abbas may be softening his opposition to an interim agreement with Israel. (Times of Israel/Jerusalem Post)

Palestinian officials say the terms of a potential land swap remain "undecided." (Xinhua)

Pres. Obama and PM Netanyahu discuss numerous issues during a phone call. (AP)

Sec. Kerry, in an apparent reference to Netanyahu, says he won't give into "fear tactics" regarding talks with Iran. (Times of Israel/Jerusalem Post)

Israeli occupation forces demolish a Palestinian home in the West Bank. (Ma’an)

Israeli occupation forces raid an African-Palestinian neighborhood in Jerusalem. (Ma’an)

Israel is assembling Palestinian prisoners about to be released. (Ma’an/Washington Post)

Some members of the Israeli coalition express anger at the next round of Palestinian prisoner release. (New York Times/AP)

Israeli victims' families protest the release of Palestinian prisoners. (Xinhua)

Israel's Economy Minister Bennett insists he never made a deal with Netanyahu about trading settlements for prisoner release. (Jerusalem Post)

Experts see the release as essential to advancing peace talks. (Xinhua)

Israel agrees to participate in a UN human rights review of its conduct. (New York Times)

The EU is considering an Israeli proposal to end the dispute over its occupation guidelines. (Jerusalem Post)

An Israeli government agency has been funding a call center trying to sell settlement homes, including unauthorized ones. (Ha'aretz)

A Palestinian citizen of Israel is suing a Tel Aviv café for firing him for "not being Jewish." (Ha'aretz)

Israel complains to the UN about rocket fire coming from Gaza. (PNN)

A new report details human rights violations against Palestinian refugees in Syria. (PNN)

Iran reportedly offers a "new approach" in nuclear negotiations. (AP)

Former UK FM Jack Straw insists he's not "anti-Semitic." (Times of Israel)

The new Bank of Israel Governor says discrimination against Arabs must end or Israel will suffer economically. (Jerusalem Post)

 

Commentary:

Akiva Eldar says a series of studies demonstrates that Israelis have nothing to fear from the creation of a Palestinian state. (Al Monitor)

Roger Cohen says angering Saudi Arabia does not serve American interests. (New York Times)

Palestinian filmmaker Hany Abu-Assad says, "My films condemn oppression." (Ma’an)

Avi Issacharoff says Hamas is sinking into ever deeper political woes. (Times of Israel)

Adnan Abu Amer asks why Iran postponed a visit by Hamas leader Mishaal. (Al Monitor)

Elior Levy says Israel believes Hamas is preparing for its next conflict with Israel and wants to strike Tel Aviv. (YNet)

J.J. Goldberg asks how Israel should respond to the discovery of a Hamas tunnel from Gaza to Israel. (The Forward)

Abdallah Schleifer says conditions are ripe for a third Palestinian intifada. (Al Arabiya)

Yossi Klein Halevi says the Israeli centrist majority isn't optimistic about achieving either peace or security. (Los Angeles Times)

Noah Klieger says no one in Israel except negotiator Livni believes talks will result in peace. (YNet)

Bradley Burston says Uri Avnery spent 90 years being ahead of his time, and he still may be. (Ha'aretz)

Kenneth Bandler says Israel must invest more in its Arab population. (Jerusalem Post)

Eric Yoffie says billionaire Sheldon Adelson should apologize for offensive remarks or be shunned by respectable Jewish groups. (Ha'aretz)

Zvi Hauser says peace requires Palestinian recognition of Israel as a "Jewish state." (Al Monitor)

Samuel Lebens says despite Hebron's importance to Jews, Israel must give it up for peace. (Daily Beast/Open Zion)

The Washington Post calls US policy toward Syria "empty words." (Washington Post)

Hussein Ibish says Syrian Americans should engage the American political system to impact policy. (NOW)

Michael Weiss says Iran is supplying free fuel and other supplies to the Syrian dictatorship. (Foreign Policy)

The BBC looks at the potential for an independent Kurdish state in parts of Iraq. (BBC)

Asharq Al-Awsat interviews the head of Egypt's new constitution-drafting committee, Amr Moussa. (Asharq Al-Awsat)