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Israeli Operations in the West Bank
At least eight people have been killed and dozens injured by a major Israeli military operation in the city of Jenin in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday, according to Palestinian health sources, as the precarious ceasefire in Gaza began its third day. Even before Hamas' October 7 attack sparked the war in Gaza, Jenin experienced numerous Israeli raids and gunfights.
Days after a deal was struck between Israel and Hamas to pause the fighting in Gaza, the Israeli military and security services declared a “significant and broad military operation” in the West Bank, which is notably not a part of the ceasefire agreement.
Middle East Policy has published Israel’s Wars, a special issue on the war in Gaza that draws on the journal’s decades covering the region to provide insights into the motivations of the key actors.
President Trump’s New Executive Orders
Under a new executive order signed on January 20, all U.S. foreign assistance programs will be temporarily suspended for 90 days as they are reviewed to determine if they are “fully aligned” with President Donald Trump's policy objectives. Since funding for many programs has already been allocated by Congress and must be spent, it was unclear how much aid would immediately be impacted by the Monday afternoon decision. This includes both military aid to Israel and humanitarian assistance to Gaza.
The directive, one of several that Trump signed on his first day back in office, stated that the “foreign aid industry and bureaucracy are not aligned with American interests and in many cases antithetical to American values” and “serve to destabilize world peace by promoting ideas in foreign countries that are directly inverse to harmonious and stable relations internally to and among countries.”
Middle East Policy has published a special issue on the Gaza war, featuring interviews with key players and contributions that explore the sparks fueling the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Gaza Ceasefire
More than 1,500 trucks with humanitarian aid have entered the Gaza Strip in the first two days of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire, implemented on Sunday, January 19, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
That includes more than 630 trucks on Sunday and 915 trucks on Monday, according to OCHA. Of those that crossed into Gaza on Sunday, the agency said at least 300 trucks went to the north, which the UN has warned is facing imminent famine. According to civil defense, an additional 10,000 bodies may be under the thousands of tons of rubble in the Strip.
Three female hostages were reunited with their families on Monday and determined to be in “a good state.” Thirty other hostages, most of whom are presumed to be alive, are slated to be gradually freed in releases every seven days as part of the first phase of the deal. Hamas confirmed Monday in a statement that the next batch of hostages would be released next Saturday, January 25.
In the Israeli-occupied West Bank, large crowds gathered in Beitunia to welcome 90 Palestinian freed from Israeli prisons, all of them women or teenagers. Prominent political activist Khalida Jarrar was among those freed, photos from news agencies showed.
A new Middle East Policy article by M.T. Samuel examines the year of violence in Gaza and history of the conflict in the context of international law.
Lebanon’s Border
While meeting with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in Beirut, Lebanon's new president, Joseph Aoun, demanded that Israel leave the southern part of the country by January 26, the date established in last year's November 27 Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire. Guterres has said he will “exert utmost efforts” to ensure the “secure” withdrawal of the forces within the deadline set by the agreement.
France’s Emmanuel Macron is the first foreign head of state to visit Beirut since Joseph Aoun was elected. In his visit on January 17, Macron called on Israel to accelerate its troop withdrawal from southern Lebanon as a deadline for the pullout nears, stating, “We need a total withdrawal of the Israeli army.”
A Middle East Policy article by Daniel Sobelman explores how Hezbollah has wielded coercive power over Israel, particularly in matters relating to its relationship with Lebanon.
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