On departing – Amira Hass in Haaretz:

‘Hassan, one of the siblings, a science professor, was naturalized in the European country where he studied. On Friday, he and his wife and children were among the foreign nationals whom Israel and Egypt had allowed to leave Gaza – about 1,047 so far. He said to me, “I will never return to the Gaza Strip.” Even with the emotional difficulty of parting from elderly parents, many families consciously decide to split up, between shelters or when heading out for food or water. That way, their fate might be different than that of the families wiped out in the bombings. Heading abroad, therefore, isn’t seen as abandoning family, but rather as a way to keep at least a part of it alive.’

Read the article here.

Migrating is the best way to overcome poverty, assuming that not everybody does it needless to say, fleeing is often the best way to stay alive. But sometimes also a defeat, a hint of ethnic cleansing.

The question that’s on everybody’s mind, at least on the mind of many politicians in the West: what will become of Gaza after this war?

As I reported about three weeks ago, Hamas won the war already on October 7. The Palestinians are back on the top of the international agenda. The fact that Hamas itself is not interested in any kind of peace, a revolutionary moment needs permanent revolution, is less important.

And despite all the grandiose statements, coming from all sides, I would still put my money on the bet that after this war we will go back to the status quo ante.

There is no alternative to Hamas, not the PA, not an international body, perhaps AI but AI is not that developed yet. Unfortunate for the Palestinians and the rest of the world.

Also, the bigger war is against the US, in this context Gaza is a minor detail. From the perspective of Iran, Gaza is the décor for the first act, the second act will take place somewhere else.