+972 editor Vera Sajrawi stands in front of the well in the depopulated village of Al-Sajara. (Maria Zreik)

‘Your grandparents couldn’t return to Al-Sajara. But I know they died hoping’

Little remains of the village from which +972 editor Vera Sajrawi’s grandparents were uprooted in 1948. Living out the rest of their lives close by as internal refugees, they yearned for what was taken from them.
By Vera Sajrawi
Ghousoon Bisharat, editor-in-chief at +972 Magazine. (Rana Matar)

My first letter as +972’s new editor-in-chief

The situation in Israel-Palestine is extremely perilous. But therein lies a tremendous potential to mobilize around +972’s core values.
By Ghousoon Bisharat
Israeli security forces guard as Palestinians make their way through a checkpoint to attend Friday prayer of the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque, near the West Bank city of Bethlehem, April 29, 2022. (Wisam Hashlamoun/Flash90)

The permit regime is Oslo’s enduring legacy. It must be abolished

The separation logic enshrined by the Oslo Accords birthed a cruel system of Israeli control, whose security justifications collapsed into openly racist ones.
By Yael Berda
Palestinians inspect the remains of a house that was the target of a drone strike by the Israeli army in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin, September 4, 2023. (Nasser Ishtayeh/Flash90)

Israel’s armed drones are heralding an era of automated killing

The use of UAVs has led to soaring exports and a mounting death toll, yet there is no public debate over their legality or morality.
By Sebastian Ben Daniel (John Brown)
Journalists take cover in the face of attacks by participants in the annual Jerusalem Day Flag March in Jerusalem's Old City, May 18, 2023. (Oren Ziv)
ANALYSIS

IDF media intrusions drop, but self-censorship remains in force

While redactions fell to a 12-year low, Israel’s military censor is still violating press freedom and concealing vital information from the public.
By Haggai Matar
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All 15 justices of Israel's High Court sit for a hearing on petitions against the government's amendment to Basic Law: The Judiciary, Jerusalem, September 12, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
Will Israel’s High Court defy the far-right government?
As the Court hears petitions against the first judicial overhaul bill, Palestinian human rights lawyer Hassan Jabareen assesses the state of play.
By Ghousoon Bisharat September 15, 2023
Edo Konrad. (Oren Ziv)
My last letter: Speak the words we were taught to fear
+972’s outgoing editor-in-chief reflects on the changes to the site and on the ground during his tenure, and calls for courage to confront reality head-on.
By Edo Konrad September 15, 2023
Palestinian politician Hanan Ashrawi, seen in her office in the West Bank city of Ramallah. January 31, 2012. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)
‘I told Arafat: Israel will promise you an inch and not give you a millimeter’
Reflecting on the Oslo Accords 30 years later, veteran politician Hanan Ashrawi recounts her arguments with PLO leaders during the negotiations, and explains why Israel's political crisis is opening cracks in the occupation.
By Meron Rapoport September 13, 2023
Palestinian policemen celebrate their entry into the West Bank city of Jericho alongside Israeli soldiers, in accordance with the Oslo Accords, May 13, 1994. (Yossi Zamir/Flash 90)
The contradictory afterlives of Oslo
A path to peace. A blasphemous betrayal. A cover for the occupation. How did the Oslo Accords morph into such infinitely pliable meanings?
By Dahlia Scheindlin September 12, 2023
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi during a tour near the border with Lebanon, northern Israel, March 16, 2023. (David Cohen/Flash90)
Israel’s security brass are defending the High Court to save themselves
Israel's top court has consistently shielded soldiers from standing trial. Now they fear the judicial overhaul could expose them to prosecution overseas.
By Sebastian Ben Daniel (John Brown) September 11, 2023
Palestinian policemen celebrate upon entering Jericho, one of the first cities handed over to Palestinian Authority control in accordance with the Oslo Accords, May 13, 1994. (Yossi Zamir/Flash 90)
The Oslo trap: How the PLO signed its own death warrant
From asymmetrical concessions to renouncing armed struggle, the fate of the Palestinians was sealed before Arafat and Rabin even shook hands.
By Raef Zreik September 11, 2023
Adnan Barq and Faten Elwan speaking at the launch event of Fikra Magazine at the Qattan Foundation, Ramallah, West Bank, August 2, 2023. (Courtesy of Fikra)
Nurturing a new home for Palestinian literature
From photos of Gaza postage stamps to fictional stories about Shakira, Fikra magazine aims to be a creative, uncensored platform for writers and artists.
By Vera Sajrawi September 6, 2023
Eight of the conscientious objectors who signed the "Youth Against Dictatorship" refusal letter. (Oren Ziv)
‘Youth Against Dictatorship’: Meet Israel’s new class of conscientious objectors
Eight new draft refusers speak about the occupation, the anti-judicial reform protests, and conscientious objection as a tool of protest.
By Oren Ziv September 5, 2023
Eritrean asylum seekers who oppose the regime in Eritrea and pro-regime activists clash with Israeli police in south Tel Aviv, September 2, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
How Eritrean regime agents persecute asylum seekers in Israel
Israeli authorities have long turned a blind eye to the threat Eritreans face from their own government, leaving the community desperate to protect itself.
By Guli Dolev-Hashiloni September 5, 2023
Israeli teenagers sign their names onto a letter declaring their refusal to enlist in the army and serve a dictatorship in Israel or the occupied Palestinian territories, Gimnasia Herzliya, Tel Aviv, September 3, 2023. (Oren Ziv)
A lesson on Israeli ‘democracy’ from an 18-year-old draft refuser
Previous generations of Israelis closed their eyes to the oppression of Palestinians, Mizrahim, and asylum seekers. Our generation can be different.
By Yahli Agai September 5, 2023
Most Read
  1. The permit regime is Oslo’s enduring legacy. It must be abolished
  2. 'I told Arafat: Israel will promise you an inch and not give you a millimeter'
  3. 'Your grandparents couldn't return to Al-Sajara. But I know they died hoping'
  4. Israel's armed drones are heralding an era of automated killing
  5. My first letter as +972's new editor-in-chief
  1. 'I told Arafat: Israel will promise you an inch and not give you a millimeter'
  2. The permit regime is Oslo’s enduring legacy. It must be abolished
  3. Will Israel’s High Court defy the far-right government?
  4. Israel's armed drones are heralding an era of automated killing
  5. My last letter: Speak the words we were taught to fear
  1. ‘It’s like 1948’: Israel cleanses vast West Bank region of nearly all Palestinians
  2. 'I told Arafat: Israel will promise you an inch and not give you a millimeter'
  3. ‘Sorry Mohammad’: What’s behind Ben Gvir’s apartheid honesty?
  4. 'Youth Against Dictatorship': Meet Israel's new class of conscientious objectors
  5. 'Don’t raise your voice — you're not in Britain anymore'