Israel Prepares for Ethnic Cleansing as Military Seizes More Palestinian Land | Palestine Policy Roundup 04.14.25
Welcome to the Palestine Policy Roundup, a weekly publication of the IMEU Policy Project.
👀 ICYMI: MEMBERS OF CONGRESS SPEAK OUT
Sen. Andy Kim: “The death of Amer Mohammad Saada Rabee, an American citizen from New Jersey, is a tragedy and a reminder of the urgency and importance of doing everything we can to lower hostilities and find a path to a sustainable peace between Israelis and Palestinians. Today, President Trump met with Prime Minister Netanyahu and should have pressed him for a full and open investigation into Amer’s death and reinstate sanctions on Israeli settlers who have attacked Palestinian civilians in the West Bank.”
Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman on the killing of Palestinian-American Amer Rabee: “This is an atrocity. Amer was 14-years-old. He was an American citizen, from Saddle Brook, NJ. How can the Israeli military possibly justify shooting and killing an American teenager in cold blood? The US must step in and stop this madness.”
Sen. Chris Van Hollen: “Today Trump and Netanyahu talked about their plan to have Palestinians ‘voluntarily’ leave Gaza. Let's be clear: nothing about this is voluntary — it would mean the coerced deportation of 2 million people from Gaza and U.S. taxpayers should have NOTHING to do with it.”
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Mahnoud Khalil’s deportation hearing: “Mahmoud's case is a litmus test for the right to free speech in our country. This ruling jeopardizes dissent. Attacks on the First Amendment will not stop with student activists advocating for Palestinian rights.”
Rep. Rashida Tlaib: “We cannot allow the Trump Administration to end our constitutional rights. The right to free speech obviously includes the right to protest the Israeli government’s genocide of Palestinians. This fascism won’t end with Mahmoud Khalil. It’s a threat to all of us.”
DC DEVELOPMENTS
🔍 MEMBERS OF CONGRESS CALL FOR INDEPENDENT INVESTIGATION INTO KILLING OF PALESTINIAN-AMERICAN TEENAGER BY ISRAELI SOLDIERS
Last week, New Jersey Senators Andy Kim and Cory Booker urged the Trump administration to conduct a US-led independent investigation into the killing of Palestinian-American teenager Amer Rabee and the injuring of two other American citizens by Israeli soldiers. Amer was a 14-year-old boy who grew up in Saddle Brook, New Jersey.
On April 6th, Amer and two other American citizens, 14-year-old Ayoub Ijbara and 15-year-old Abdulrahman Shihada, were shot at by Israeli soldiers in the West Bank near the town of Turmus Aya while they were picking almonds. According to Mohammed Rabee, Amer’s father, Amer was shot 11 times by the soldiers, who shot at least 40 bullets at the trio. Following the killing, the Israeli military attempted to demonize Amer.
Amer’s family criticized the US embassy in Jerusalem for its slow response to the killing, and they criticized President Donald Trump for failing to press Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the killing during his visit to the White House last week. So far, the Trump administration has said little about the killing of Rabee.
Amer was far from the first American to be killed by Israeli soldiers in the West Bank. Since October 2023, Israeli soldiers have killed at least 5 American citizens, including Palestinian-American children Tawfic Abdel Jabbar and Mohammad Khdour in separate incidents.
Israeli soldiers also killed American activist Ayşenur Eygi following a protest she was observing in the West Bank. The Israeli military’s preliminary report about her killing was contradicted by witness statements and a Washington Post investigation. Jacob Flickinger, a dual Canadian-American citizen, was killed along with other humanitarian workers in an Israeli strike on World Central Kitchen humanitarian workers in Gaza in April 2024.
The Biden administration refused to hold anyone accountable for the killings of these Americans, and repeatedly refused to open investigations into the incidents.
🚨 PRESIDENT TRUMP HOSTS ALLEGED WAR CRIMINAL BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, REAFFIRMS COMMITMENT TO ETHNIC CLEANSING OF GAZA
Last week, President Trump hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for meetings at the White House for a second time this year. Netanyahu, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes committed by Israel during its genocide in Gaza, rushed to meet with the president following his meetings with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who announced during Netanyahu’s visit that his country will withdraw from the ICC.
As a signatory to the ICC, Hungary failed to fulfill its obligations to the court when it refused to arrest Netanyahu despite the court’s issuance of a warrant for his arrest.
During a press pool with Netanyahu, the pair once again doubled down on President Trump’s ethnic cleansing proposal for Gaza. This plan requires the forcible transfer of millions of Palestinians from the occupied territory, which is something that Israel is seemingly making preparations for as it establishes a government agency for so-called migration from Gaza and as the military seizes more territory there.
❌ MIKE HUCKABEE CONFIRMED AS AMBASSADOR TO ISRAEL DESPITE ANTI-PALESTINIAN RECORD
Mike Huckabee, the Trump administration’s nominee to be ambassador to Israel, was confirmed by the Senate last Wednesday in a nearly party-line vote with all Democrats except Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman voting against the confirmation.
Mike Huckabee’s long record of anti-Palestinian racism has been well documented. He has repeatedly denied the existence of Palestinians, endorsed the principles of President Trump’s ethnic cleansing plan for Gaza, and argued against a ceasefire in Gaza before an agreement was reached earlier this year. He is also a supporter of Israel’s campaign to annex the West Bank, and even laid bricks for the expansion of an illegal Israeli settlement in 2018.
Mike Huckabee’s radical and deeply prejudiced views on Palestinians make him unfit to serve as US Ambassador to Israel. As ambassador, Huckabee will have great influence on US support for Israel’s continued occupation and potential annexation of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Gaza, as well as the continuation of Israel’s apartheid against Palestinians.
IN THE NEWS
⚖️ LOUISIANA IMMIGRATION JUDGE RULES AGAINST MAHMOUD KHALIL, BUT THE FIGHT FOR HIS RELEASE IS NOT OVER
On Friday, a Louisiana immigration judge ruled that Mahmoud Khalil, the former Palestinian student-activist at Columbia University who holds a green card, is removable under US immigration law. He will remain detained without charge because he spoke up for Palestinian rights.
This ruling came days after the federal government submitted a memo that once again made clear that Khalil is being targeted because of his speech and activism in support of Palestinian rights. The memo also explicitly says that Khalil’s activities are lawful and affirms that the State Department revoked his legal permanent residency using a rarely used and draconian section of the Immigration and Nationality Act. This was the only evidence that the federal government submitted in support of its efforts to deport Khalil.
What this case is about is whether any visa holders or immigrants, including lawful permanent residents like Khalil, enjoy the right to free speech guaranteed by the First Amendment. If the justice system does not protect Mahmoud Khalil, all of us–including US citizens–could be next.
🔑 KEY TAKEAWAY: Amy Greer, associate attorney at Dratel & Lewis and one of Khalil’s attorneys, said of the ruling: “This is egregious overreach by the US government. Every single person in this country has the right to speak out against issues that matter to them — and I fear that this decision will embolden the Trump administration to target other vulnerable people who are simply speaking out for Palestinian human rights and against an ongoing genocide. We have fought for Mahmoud’s release every single day since he was detained. We will continue to do so until he is home with his family.”
Mahmoud’s attorneys have indicated that they will challenge the ruling before the Board of Immigration Appeals and that he will likely apply for asylum. Additionally, Khalil’s challenge to his abduction and detention will continue in a federal court in New Jersey. Attorneys in that case request that Khalil be released on bail and returned to New York City and seek to block the Trump administration’s unconstitutional crackdown on the free speech of noncitizens who speak out in support of Palestinian rights.
Mahmoud Khalil was abducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents more than one month ago in New York City after he and his wife were returning from iftar, the fast-breaking meal for Muslims during the month of Ramadan. Khalil was rushed from New York to a detention center in New Jersey and ultimately taken to a detention center in Louisiana–a strategy the Trump administration has employed against other academics and students who have spoken in support of Palestinian rights, like Rumeysa Öztürk, presumably to avoid legal scrutiny of its campaign of mass deportations by moving people detained to more conservative jurisdictions.
Some estimates suggest that the Trump administration has now cancelled over 1,000 student visas, and an untold number of people here legally are being targeted, detained, or deported unconstitutionally.
Friday’s ruling is the beginning—not the end—of the fight to protect the right to free speech for Mahmoud Khalil and everyone in this country. Khalil’s case is a test to see how far the Trump administration will be allowed to shred our fundamental democratic rights. Members of Congress should still speak out in support of Mahmoud Khalil and oppose the Trump administration’s crackdown on free speech.
📊 PEW RESEARCH POLL FINDS MAJORITY OF AMERICANS HAVE UNFAVORABLE VIEW OF ISRAEL
A new poll published by the Pew Research Center found that a majority (53%) of Americans now hold unfavorable opinions of Israel–an increase of 11 points since the last time Pew asked this question in 2022. The trend is even more pronounced among Democrats, nearly 70% of whom hold unfavorable opinions of Israel.
These unfavorable opinions grew among both Democrats and Republicans across different age groups. Democrats over the age of 50 had the largest increase in this unfavorable view, with two-thirds indicating that they have a negative view of Israel. That is an increase of more than 20 points since 2022. Most younger Democrats viewed Israel unfavorably in 2022, but that figure has now grown to more than 70%.
The findings about Democrats are also in line with many other recent polls: Gallup polls have shown support for Palestinian rights has increased among Democrats as Israel’s favorability rating among the party’s base has plummeted. Another poll published by The Economist/YouGov found that 35% of Democrats sympathize more with Palestinians–more than 3.5 times as many as the 9% who sympathize more with Israelis.
IMEU Policy Project’s poll published in January found that nearly 30% of Biden 2020 voters who did not vote for Kamala Harris in 2024 indicated that ending Israel’s violence in Gaza was the most important motivation for their vote.
If the Democratic Party is serious about mounting a challenge to the extremist MAGA agenda in the 2026 midterms, it would do well to listen to the compelling evidence that its base does not support Israel’s oppression of Palestinians. Democratic leadership must listen to voters and commit to ending US support for this oppression and instead support Palestinian rights.
PALESTINE/ISRAEL DEVELOPMENTS
🖊️ ISRAELI STRIKE ON MEDIA TENT KILLS JOURNALISTS AS AL AHLI HOSPITAL BOMBED
An Israeli strike on a media tent near Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis last Monday killed at least two Palestinian journalists as Israel continued its genocidal violence across Gaza. Several reporters were also injured in the strike. Journalist Helmi al-Faqawi was killed by the strike, which set fire to the targeted tent. Horrifying video of journalist Ahmad Mansour being burned alive by the flames spread in the aftermath of the strike. Mansour later died of his injuries.
This attack came just days after a report published by the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs’ Costs of War project found that 232 journalists have been killed during Israel’s genocide in Gaza. That averages to 13 journalists killed per month, making it the deadliest conflict for media workers ever recorded. The report states that the number of journalists killed in Gaza is more “than the U.S. Civil War, World Wars I and II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War (including the conflicts in Cambodia and Laos), the wars in Yugoslavia in the 1990s and 2000s, and the post-9/11 war in Afghanistan, combined.”
The Israeli military also continued its catastrophic destruction across Gaza last week. Six Palestinians were killed by an Israeli strike on a charity kitchen near Khan Younis. Palestinians in Gaza are once again facing food insecurity as Israel has obstructed humanitarian aid to Gaza for more than a month. At least 60,000 Palestinian children are malnourished and aid agencies warned that hunger is spreading.
Another Israeli strike on a residential building near Gaza City on Wednesday killed more than 20 Palestinians and likely displaced countless more.
Yesterday, Israel struck the Al Ahli Hospital in Gaza City in an apparent war crime. Al Ahli was the last remaining fully functional hospital in the northern part of Gaza. A Palestinian girl reportedly died during the medical evacuation preceding the strike because medical workers were unable to provide urgent care for her. Israel’s evacuation order issued before the strike forced patients, many of whom are suffering injuries from previous Israeli strikes, to flee. This strike also threatens to deprive Palestinians of critical medical care as they recover from Israeli attacks and grapple with the spread of disease and hunger.
⚠️ ISRAELI MILITARY CUTS RAFAH OFF FROM THE REST OF GAZA AS IT PREPARES TO SEIZE THE AREA
The Israeli military announced last Friday that it completed the construction of what it calls the Morag Corridor, effectively cutting off Rafah and southern Gaza from the rest of the strip. The Israeli army also issued more forced displacement orders for neighborhoods in Khan Younis, and Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced that the Israeli army will seize more Palestinian land to expand the Netzarim Corridor that cuts off northern Gaza from the rest of the occupied territory.
As of last week, Israel seized more than 50% of Palestinian land in Gaza and displaced more than 400,000 Palestinians since it broke the ceasefire nearly one month ago. Both those figures are certain to increase as Israel continues its ethnic cleansing campaign. This announcement came after reports that the Israeli military is planning to seize all of Rafah and incorporate it into a so-called buffer zone. This would amount to a seizure of 20% of Palestinian land in Gaza, and would result in mass destruction and more forcible displacement of Palestinians.
Katz also announced that Israel will facilitate the displacement of Palestinians to countries outside of Gaza and said that the Israeli military seeks to realize President Trump’s ethnic cleansing proposal. This seizure of Palestinian land is very clearly aimed at forcibly transferring Palestinians from Gaza.
Earlier last week, the Israeli NGO Breaking The Silence released a report detailing the systematic destruction of infrastructure and killing of Palestinians in the so-called buffer zone. Israeli soldiers who were deployed in Gaza revealed that the Israeli military is systematically destroying Palestinian homes, factories, and farmland within about a half mile from the border with Israel. The report states that soldiers were given orders to “...annihilate whatever was within the designated perimeter, including entire residential neighbourhoods, public buildings, educational institutions, mosques, and cemeteries, with very few exceptions.”
Soldiers also described the border area as a “kill zone.” One Israeli captain reported that there were no rules of engagement in the so-called buffer zone, and another soldier said they were told to shoot on sight anyone who entered the area. Palestinians have no way to know when they are approaching this area.
Photo: Palestinian News & Information Agency (Wafa) in contract with APAimages, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons