What has happened since the Israel-Palestine ceasefire in May?
Ceasefires have gone nowhere, airstrikes were launched less than a month after the last calls for peace and more — let's catch you up.
Hey there, and welcome to the 36th issue of The Supplement, a newsletter that fills in the gaps of your other news intake. This is Sierra, one-third of the Supplement team!
Each week, we pick a question submitted by you, our readers. If you’d like to submit a question for a future week — it can seriously be about anything — then email us at thesupplementnewsletter@gmail.com. Befriend us on Instagram, and on Twitter. We don’t bite!
This week, we’re tackling this question: What has happened since the Israel-Palestine ceasefire in May?
TL;DR: Ceasefires have gone nowhere, and probably never will. Airstrikes were launched less than a month after the last calls for peace. An election that brought in a new Israeli government for the first time in 12 years is fragile. And though the coalition has Arab Islamist representation, it is still lead by the same nationalist ideologies as before. Forced expulsions continue, and Palestinians say there is no end in sight.
An important note: Much like how we analyze Canadian policies, our analysis of Israeli policies is about state actions. We also recognize the need to ensure conversation on these issues doesn't verge into antisemitism, which is present among hate crimes in Canada.
The last time we wrote about events to do with Israel and Palestine, we focused on the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood located in East Jerusalem. The UN’s human rights office had called on Israel to immediately halt all forced expulsions of Palestinians living there, but violence was escalating and the future of families in Sheikh Jarrah was (and is) still uncertain.
Here’s what has happened since.
A ceasefire
After 11 days of escalating violence, both Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas claimed victory over the ceasefire on May 21. Humanitarian officials warned that the damage in Gaza could take years to rebuild. World Health Organization spokeswoman Margaret Harris said Gaza’s health facilities were in danger of being overwhelmed by the thousands of injuries.
At least 243 people were killed in Gaza, according to its health ministry. In Israel, 12 people were killed, according to its medical service.
An election
Israel’s longest-serving leader, Benjamin Netanyahu, was ousted from office by a coalition of opposition parties, officially confirmed on June 13. Now the pressure is on for them to prove they can meet the needs of everyone, including Israelis of Palestinian descent.
Netanyahu’s rivals are right-wing politician Naftali Bennett (often labelled an ultra-nationalist who claims to be to the right of Netanyahu himself) and centrist leader Yair Lapid. Their new government was approved by the margin of a single vote. At the Knesset (Israel’s parliament), the vote ended at 60 to 59, with one abstention.
But the coalition is new and fragile. Eight political parties, which also include the far left and an Arab Islamist party, will be part of the government led by Bennett as prime minister and Lapid as foreign minister.
More bombings
Two days after the coalition took power, and less than a month since the ceasefire, Israel launched air strikes on Gaza again. This time, they were in response to Hamas sending incendiary balloons over the border, which are basic devices used to set fire to farmland and bush.
Both these events took place after a flag-waving march by Israeli far-right nationalists in East Jerusalem to celebrate the anniversary of Israel’s 1967 occupation of the area. The annexation of this region since the Six-Day War is not recognized by most of the international community. In turn, the march is widely seen as a provocative event, where Jewish settlers flaunt their sovereignty. Some marching could be heard chanting “Death to Arabs.” Before the march took place, political opponents were clear that they feared it would be another escalation in fighting with Hamas.
Then, for a second time, Israeli fighter jets launched air raid attacks. Hamas sent out more incendiary balloons, which are less destructive than airstrikes.
Forced expulsions continue
Evictions continue today, and are escalating.
Shortly after our last newsletter, a Jerusalem Court delayed a ruling on an appeal by seven Palestinian families, comprising 44 people, facing expulsion from their homes in Silwan. Like Sheikh Jarrah, Silwan is an East Jerusalem neighbourhood where some Palestinian families are facing forced expulsion.
“In the Israeli judiciary system, we are always the losers,” Yaqub Talal Rajabi, a member of the Protection of Silwan Committee, told The Globe and Mail. “We will only leave Silwan as dead people.”
The Globe reached out to dozens of Jewish settlers to ask for interviews. All the requests were turned down.
Next?
No ceasefire will be able to properly address any of the long-standing, underlying issues between Israel and Palestine. They haven’t worked in the past.
The new government is also under pressure to be tough on Hamas. With Bennett being a wealthy son of immigrants from the United States and entering Israeli politics eight years ago, many are still wondering what kind of leader he will be. But he has said that he does not support a full-fledged Palestinian state (he wrote in a New York Times op-ed).
Meanwhile, forced expulsions are expected to continue, as they have for decades. “Israeli courts will eventually side with the settlers in the future and the expulsions will go ahead,” Fakhri Abu Diab, head of the Committee for the Defense of Silwan’s Lands and Real Estate and a researcher on Jerusalem affairs, told Al Jazeera.
Here’s someone to follow:
I’m recommending someone to follow this week who isn’t a ~journalist~ but is important for your feed. Zoë Dodd is co-organizer with the Toronto Overdose Prevention Society and has been an outspoken advocate for harm reduction work and improving life for our most marginalized community members.
Here’s a story to check out:
“The confluence of the Kamloops discovery and the London attack have made me question what it means to be a good ally while you're also suffering,” writes Fatima Syed.
I love this story because it breaks down something complicated and uncomfortable. In her case, Fatima talks about experiencing Islamophobia as an immigrant, the feeling of failing Indigenous people, and coming to understand what Canada truly is.
Also, more heartbreaking news today:
Cowessess First Nation has found evidence of 751 unmarked graves on the site of a former residential school in Saskatchewan. Cowessess Chief Cadmus Delorme said that this is only the first phase of the location efforts, and they are still unsure if there are more bodies to be confirmed.