Israel expands control in the West Bank
The Israeli government unilaterally passed measures that allow Jewish settlers to purchase land in the West Bank, overriding past laws that effectively banned the sale of property there to anyone other than Palestinian residents. Critics say the measures mark another step toward annexing the West Bank and violate international law. A US official criticized the move, noting that President Donald Trump rejects Israeli annexation. The measures come after a two-year period in which Israeli settlers established a record number of outposts in the West Bank, a development that has drawn relatively little attention as the world’s focus was instead on Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza during that time.
Challenger to Hungary’s Orbán releases manifesto
The center-right Tisza party, led by Peter Magyar, a former acolyte of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, has outlined its vision for a post-Orbán Hungary. In a manifesto shared over the weekend, the party says it wants to restore European Union funding that has been suspended over rule-of-law violations, tackle corruption, tax the ultra-rich, repair ties with the EU and NATO, review economic ties with Russia, and maintain Hungary’s strict refusal to accept EU migration quotas. That mix of nationalism in social spheres and Euro-Atlanticist outlook in foreign policy — reminiscent of Italian PM Giorgia Meloni — has won Magyar huge support, especially among younger Hungarians. Polls show that in the April election, he could dethrone the proudly “illiberal” Orbán, who has held power for 16 years.
