Palestinian politics

Members of Knesset Mansour Abbas and Ahmad Tibi walking outside the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Knesset, in Jerusalem, June 3, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Palestinians could decide Israel’s election. But their parties are at a stalemate

Core disputes over how to utilize political power may not be resolved in time to form a new Joint List — and competing parties are ready to capitalize.

By Samah Watad July 24, 2026

Sheikh Raed Salah, leader of the Northern Branch of the islamic Movement, and Mohammad Barakeh, chairman of High Follow Up Committee, arrive for a visit at the Temple Mount in Jerusalem's Old City, April 19, 2022. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

First Israel silenced Palestinian citizens. Now it turns to their leaders

Recent cases involving prominent Arab officials reveal the state's strategy: digging up old statements and seeking severe punishment in Israeli courts.

By Baker Zoubi July 6, 2026

Omar Rahman. (Courtesy)

PODCAST: The cost of a failed Palestinian leadership

As Palestinians face existential threats but also maintain unprecedented global support, Omar Rahman examines why their politics are more broken than ever.

By +972 Magazine June 11, 2026

Latest

The first meeting of the National Gathering of Palestinian Tribes, Clans, and Families, May 16. (Mohamed Solaimane)

How clans are organizing to fill Gaza’s leadership void

Extended families across the Strip are holding elections to ensure they are accounted for by aid groups — and, for some, to consolidate political ambitions.

By Mohamed Solaimane May 26, 2026

Hadash MK Ayman Odeh and Ta'al MK Ahmad Tibi seen during a Hadash–Ta'al faction meeting, at the Knesset in Jerusalem, June 10, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Can a renewed Joint List survive until Israel’s elections?

The leaders of Israel’s four Arab parties say they agree on the importance of a unified electoral alliance. Yet they remain divided on the terms of the pact.

By Samah Salaime April 14, 2026

A man holds a sign that reads "Life" in both Hebrew and Arabic, during a protest against the war in Gaza, in Tel Aviv, April 24, 2025. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)

The false symmetry of Jewish-Arab partnership

Under conditions of apartheid, binationalism requires Israeli Jews to relinquish leadership and join the Palestinian-led struggle for decolonization.

By Areej Sabbagh-Khoury February 11, 2026

Palestinian citizens of Israel, including Hadash party head Ayman Odeh, hold a mass demonstration against the epidemic of criminal violence and state neglect, Sakhnin, northern Israel, January 22, 2026. (Michael Giladi/Flash90)

What the Joint List’s revival signifies for Palestinian politics in Israel

Beyond electoral arithmetic, the reunification of Arab parties is a step toward rebuilding political infrastructure and combating social fragmentation.

By Abed Abou Shhadeh January 28, 2026

Hamas militants show force during the handing over of hostage bodies to the Red Cross in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, February 20, 2025. (Doaa Albaz/Activestills)

‘Steadfastness’ without substance: How Hamas narrates the Gaza war today

In an updated text, the group is unapologetic for its conduct, taking credit for the damage Israel’s genocide did to itself while offering no political horizon.

By Menachem Klein January 14, 2026

PODCAST: Marwan Barghouti’s long walk to Palestine’s freedom

Arab Barghouti discusses the agony of not knowing if his father would be freed in the ceasefire or killed in his cell, and why Israel still sees him as such a threat.

By +972 Magazine January 8, 2026

Palestinians watch as other families return from the southern parts of the Gaza Strip to the north, along Al-Rashid Street, October 10, 2025. (Yousef Zaanoun/Activestills)

Gaza must decide its own political future — before the world does for us

We cannot repeat the slow death of Oslo nor replace Hamas with another detached faction, but instead rethink the foundations of our political culture.

By Mahmoud Mushtaha October 16, 2025

Smoke rises following an Israeli military strike in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 6, 2025. (Ali Hassan/Flash90)

Two years after October 7, Palestine has become a graveyard of failed strategies

Even if Trump’s plan ends the Gaza war, Palestinians will face a deep, enduring void: of language, hope, and politics that proved futile in the face of genocide.

By Muhammad Shehada October 7, 2025

Members of the Joint list are seen during celebrations in the headquarters of Joint List in the city of Nazareth, on the night of the Israeli general elections, March 17, 2015. (Akrm Drawshi/Activestills)

What can the Joint List teach us about building Palestinian political power?

Ten years after its formation, this experiment in Palestinian unity inside Israel — and its ultimate collapse — shows the need for carefully cultivated alliances.

By Rida Abu Rass May 23, 2025

Displaced Palestinians return their homes during the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel in Jabalia, in the central Gaza Strip, January 23, 2025 (Khalil Kahlout/Flash90)

A ceasefire can only bring temporary relief. It’s what comes next that counts

Any hope for Gaza's future requires not just an end to the war and 18-year siege, but accountability for Israel's crimes and Palestinian political unification.

By Mahmoud Mushtaha January 24, 2025