Israel and the Palestinian Territories
For over seven decades, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has shaped Middle East politics. Hamas’ terror attack on October 7, 2023, and the Israeli military response in Gaza, have sparked a new phase in the conflict’s trajectory and efforts to resolve it, with lasting impacts that will transform Israeli and Palestinian societies, as well as regional dynamics. Building on over 30 years of partnering with Israeli and Palestinian peacebuilders; facilitating confidence building steps between the parties; and informing policy considerations of U.S. and international mediators, USIP is supporting Israeli and Palestinian civil society partners seeking to foster trust within and between their traumatized societies and take joint action to prevent the spread of violent deterioration. The Institute also contributes to policy deliberations, with an emphasis on convening Israeli, Palestinian and regional partners to ensure insights from the ground inform the pursuit of a regionally-supported, just, peaceful and sustainable solution to the conflict.
Featured Publications
Mona Yacoubian on the Middle East’s Dangerous Escalation Dynamic
Amid the latest exchange of strikes between Israel and Iran, the Middle East is “a region that really is on fire,” says USIP’s Mona Yacoubian. “There are no guardrails anymore … all of these different players are testing and probing each other to see what they can get away with. And that’s where the danger lies.”
What’s Next for Israel, Iran and Prospects for a Wider Middle East War?
Early Saturday morning in Tehran, Israel carried out what it called a series of “precise and targeted” airstrikes on Iranian military targets. This was the latest in a series of direct exchanges between Isarel and Iran in recent months. Israel Defense Forces struck 20 sites, including air defense batteries and radar, factories for missile and drone production, and weapons and aircraft launch sites. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that the attack had "severely damaged Iran’s defense capability and its ability to produce missiles.” The Iranian government announced the deaths of four military personnel and one civilian, but otherwise took a more measured response than might be expected.
A Year After October 7, the Middle East Crisis Has No End in Sight
The grim anniversary of Hamas’ October 7 attacks on Israel and the ensuing war brought little respite for memorialization and healing from the enormity of loss with which Israeli and Palestinian societies have been grappling. More than 100 of the over 250 Israeli and foreign hostages abducted that day into Gaza are estimated to remain in captivity, with only 64 presumed still alive; upward of 42,000 Gazans have been killed in the ongoing war, most of the enclave’s population has been repeatedly displaced, and damage and humanitarian devastation is widespread. A multi-front war that has simmered since that day is now poised to boil over with catastrophic potential for the region.