Free Republic

Monday’s opening of the U.S. Embassy in contested Jerusalem, cheered by Israelis as a historic validation, is seen by Palestinians as an in-your-face affirmation of pro-Israel bias by President Donald Trump and a new blow to dreams of statehood. The festive inauguration helps harden Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ rejection of Washington as a future mediator in the conflict with Israel, likely ushering in a prolonged period of diplomatic vacuum in which other powers are unwilling or unable to step up as brokers. Such paralysis and loss of hope have been major drivers of Palestinian unrest. Underscoring the conflict’s volatility, thousands...

War scars Gaza's children TRAUMA: Counselors fan out across the area in an effort to calm nightmares. By Karin Laub, The Associated Press Posted: 01/25/2009 08:52:26 PM PST JEBALIYA, Gaza Strip - Surrounded by mountains of rubble that were once their homes, two dozen children sat on a rainbow-colored blanket and drew with crayons. They quickly filled the pages passed around by trauma counselors with pictures of Israeli tanks, dead bodies and Palestinians firing assault rifles - scenes they saw when Israel's war on Hamas came into their neighborhood. "We felt we will die soon," 11-year-old Sharif Abed Rabbo told...