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Ad Hoc Studies

Palestinian-Arab perspective on the delay of the IDF ground maneuver in the Gaza Strip

The Palestinian and Arab media have given extensive coverage to the IDF's preparations for the next phase of the war in the Gaza Strip, i.e. the ground maneuver. The media follow the preparations, including the increased number and deployment along the Gaza Strip border. They also ask why the ground maneuver has not yet begun. Monitoring Hamas, Palestinian and Arab sources has revealed the following: Hamas shows great confidence in its military capabilities and its ability to prevent Israel from achieving its objectives in the war. It has identified the difficulty Israel is having in making decisions, hesitancy at the military and political levels and considerable embarrassment, difficulty in dealing with international pressure and the hostage situation along with concern of ground warfare against the skilled military operatives in the Gaza Strip, who are equipped with special weapons. The Palestinian media publish cartoons warning the IDF against a ground incursion into Gaza and even mocking it for its "cowardice." Various Palestinian sources disagree as to whether the IDF will actually carry out the ground maneuver because of the complexity of the operation and the expected number of casualties. The Arab media review a variety of reasons, including international reasons, for the delay in the ground maneuver.
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The mass exodus of young men from the Gaza Strip

In recent years, the desire to emigrate from the Gaza Strip, with the overwhelming majority of the émigrés' being young men, has increased; it is difficult to estimate its scope because Hamas does not publish exact numbers. However, according to several reports, since Hamas took over the Gaza Strip in 2007, between about 250,000 and 350,000 young adults have left and gone abroad. Their initial destination is Turkey, from where their intention is to continue to other countries, primarily European countries and Canada.The issue recently made headlines after on September 9, 2023, there were violent clashes between hundreds of young Gazans and the security guards of a travel agency in Gaza City which had received a monopoly for issuing visas to Turkey. Apparently the exodus is increasing and the events at the travel agency's offices was a manifestation of the growing demand for visas. The most prominent causes are the lack of hope and employment possibilities. Hamas tries to minimize and obscure the extent of emigration Currently, more people are being born in the Gaza Strip than are leaving it, but the mass emigration of the specific age group in question may affect its social and economic structure. In addition, for the most part, the military wings of the terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip are composed of operatives belonging to the demographic, therefore it is unclear if mass emigration will affect them and their activities.
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UNIFIL’s Mandate Renewed The Resolution – Its Implications and Consequences

On August 31, 2023, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 2695 renewing UNIFIL's mandate in south Lebanon for another year. Thirteen countries voted in favor; Russia and China abstained. Since the establishment of UNIFIL, the renewal of the mandate had been a routine procedure taking place every year at the end of August. This year, however, under the pretext of maintaining Lebanon's sovereignty, the Lebanese government and Hezbollah exerted strong pressure to undermine UNIFIL's power and limit its activities to those approved by the Lebanese army. During deliberations, the Security Council condemned the violations of both sides along the border and called on the parties to honor their commitments and help promote a permanent ceasefire. The Security Council also charged the Lebanese government with the responsibility of keeping south Lebanon demilitarized, except for the arms in the hands of the government, and asked UNIFIL to be deployed in south Lebanon in accordance with Security Council Resolution 1701. In ITIC assessment, the resolution as passed will not change the nature of UNIFIL's activities in south Lebanon. Lebanese army cooperation with UNIFIL will be limited as before and Hezbollah will do everything in its power to preserve and expand its freedom of action in south Lebanon, even at the cost of confrontations with UNIFIL.
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Possible Renewal of the Return Marches

On August 30, 2023, the Supreme National Authority for Return Marches and Lifting the Siege issued an announcement about rebuilding the return camps near the border security fence in the eastern Gaza Strip and preparing them for the possible renewal of the return marches. Despite the announcement, the possibility of renewing the return marches and the events along the border, the Supreme National Authority leadership claimed it had not yet made a decision because an in-depth discussion was required and there had to be a national consensus. Moreover, contrary to the unified position of the past, many Palestinian organizations, led by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), currently oppose the renewal of the return marches, mainly because from their perspective they are not "cost-effective." Senior figures in the Gaza Strip, political commentators, and social media users argued that the Palestinians had paid a steep price for the return marches while the situation in the Gaza Strip had not improved.
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Iranian activity to expand its regional religious-cultural influence through soft power

In recent years, Iran has expanded its religious and cultural activities in Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon. It invests substantial effort in spreading Shi'ite Islam, Iranian culture, and the ideology of the Islamic Revolution. As used by Iran, soft power includes elements of both Shi'a-religious and Iranian national-cultural features, chiefly the Persian language. Iranian institutions work to restore and expand the Shi'ite shrines in Syria and Iraq, establish religious and cultural centers, open schools and branches of Iranian universities, encourage the study of Persian in educational institutions, and promote communication and propagandist activities to spread the Islamic Republic's official positions and ideology. In addition to religion and culture, Iran exploits the socio-economic crisis in the Arab countries to increase its civilian influence by establishing social institutions that provide health, education, and welfare services, mainly to low socio-economic strata.Iran's promotion of its influence through soft power is part of its efforts to establish itself in the Arab region.
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The City of Jerusalem in the Palestinian Authority Schoolbooks

This research discusses the image of the city of Jerusalem as revealed in the Palestinian Authority's schoolbooks currently used the PA schools in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem. Seventy textbooks for grades 1-10 were examined for the purpose of this study. These are the most updated versions, mostly published in 2020 (see the List of Sources at the end of this study). Jerusalem's image, as reflected in the books is strongly one-sided, in sharp contrast to its image in the Israeli schoolbooks, which emphasize its holiness to the three monotheistic religions and treat its Arab inhabitants as the city's integral.
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