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Contents: (1) Intro.; (2) Oslo-Era Security Assist.; Backslides and Delays in Reform: 2000-07; USSC Mission: 2007-2009; Future Prospects; (3) PA Security Org.; (4) How U.S. Efforts are Coordinated: U.S. Train. Assist. to PA Forces; Forces Being Trained; Trainee Recruit. and Vetting; U.S. Equip. and Facilities Assist.; (5) Deployment of U.S.-Sponsored, JIPTC-Trained PA Forces: Jenin, Hebron, Qalqilya, and Other Key Areas; During the Gaza Conflict; Assessing the Impact of U.S. Assist.; (6) Will the IDF Allow Greater Coord. and Freedom of Action?; USSC Role; Criminal Justice Sector Reform; (7) Expanding U.S. Mandate and/or Capabilities; Contingency Plans; Benchmarks and/or Periodic Reports/Accountings. Illustrations.

Since the establishment of limited Palestinian self-rule in the West Bank and Gaza Strip in the mid-1990s, the U.S. government has committed over $4 billion in bilateral assistance to the Palestinians, who are among the world's largest per capita recipients of international foreign aid. Successive Administrations have requested aid for the Palestinians to support at least three major U.S. policy priorities of interest to Congress: combating, neutralizing, and preventing terrorism against Israel from the Islamist group Hamas and other militant organizations; creating a virtuous cycle of stability and prosperity in the West Bank that inclines Palestinians toward peaceful coexistence with Israel and prepares them for self-governance; and, meeting humanitarian needs and preventing further destabilization, particularly in the Gaza Strip. Because of congressional concerns that, among other things, funds might be diverted to Palestinian terrorist groups, U.S. aid is subject to a host of vetting and oversight requirements and legislative restrictions. U.S. assistance to the Palestinians is given alongside assistance from other international donors, and U.S. policymakers routinely call for greater or more timely assistance from Arab governments in line with pledges those governments make. Even if the immediate objectives of U.S. assistance programs for the Palestinians are met, lack of progress toward a politically legitimate and peaceful two-state solution could undermine the utility of U.S. aid in helping the Palestinians become more cohesive, stable, and self-reliant over the long term.

This report covers current issues in U.S.-Palestinian relations. It also contains an overview of Palestinian society and politics and descriptions of key Palestinian individuals and groups- chiefly the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the Palestinian Authority (PA), Fatah, Hamas, and the Palestinian refugee population. The "Palestinian question" is important not only to Palestinians, Israelis, and their Arab state neighbors, but to many countries and non-state actors in the region and around the world-including the United States-for a variety of religious, cultural, and political reasons.

The circumstances surrounding the collapse of the Camp David summit between U.S. president Bill Clinton, Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak and Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Yasser Arafat in July 2000 are still hotly debated by scholars and experts of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In pointing out the myriad of reasons for the breakdown, some have pointed to flaws in leaders' personalities and differences in negotiation styles; others have stressed the lack of sufficient preparations for the summit and the initial unbridgeable differences between the parties attending it. Most experts, however, agree that domestic considerations played a major role in the summit progression and eventual breakdown. This book highlights the attempts to salvage peace against the backdrop of intensifying violence during the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict and the role of domestic factors, particularly public opinion in determining the conduct of Israelis and Palestinians since the beginning of the second intifada. This book consists of public documents which have been located, gathered, combined, reformatted, and enhanced with a subject index, selectively edited and bound to provide easy access.

The Gaza crisis constitutes a conundrum for all involved. Israel would like to avoid a drawn-out invasion and occupation of Gaza, but at the same time does not want to abandon the military operation prematurely for fear of having to go back into Gaza at a later date. Although the ground attack might endanger its rule in Gaza, Hamas may welcome it in the hopes of miring Israeli forces in close-quarters combat to strip away their advantages in technology and firepower and in hopes of heightening perceptions that Palestinians are being victimized. Linking the cessation of violence in and around Gaza with international enforcement of a truce or a broader regional security initiative may be possible, but, at present, no proposed solution appears straightforward.

Contents: (1) Gaza Conflict: Post-Conflict Developments; Origins; Did Israel Achieve Its Goals?; (2) Palestinian Rocket Attacks from Gaza: Threat Assessment and Israeli Responses; (3) Impact on Palestinian Civilians, and Israeli Civilians; (4) Addressing the Needs of the Gazan Population; Preventing Arms Smuggling into Gaza; Intra-Palestinian Politics ¿- Fatah (PA/PLO) and Hamas; Regional and International Implications; Impact on Israeli Elections; Effect on the Arab-Israeli Peace Process; (5) Defense Approp. for U.S.-Israeli Missile Defense Programs; Oversight of U.S. Arms Sales to Israel; U.S. Humanitarian Aid and Other Econ. Assistance to Palestinians; U.S. Security Assistance to the Palestinian Authority; (6) Implications for U.S. Policy. Illus.

This report discusses the recent revolution in Libya, from its 2011 uprising to the end of the Qadhafi era. It specifically looks at Libya's weapons of mass destruction (WMD) disarmament, political reform and human rights, and energy as it relates to the Libyan economy.

Since 2014, the United States and members of a coalition it leads have partnered with a politically diverse set of Kurdish groups to combat the Islamic State organization (IS, also known as ISIS/ISIL or by the Arabic acronym Da'esh). For background information on these groups and their relationships in the region, see CRS In Focus IF10350, The Kurds in Iraq, Turkey, Syria, and Iran, by Jim Zanotti and Bolko J. Skorupski.The capabilities of various Kurdish ground forces have advanced some U.S. objectives in connection with ongoing anti-IS operations. At the same time, as these operations increasingly focus on predominantly Sunni Arab areas such as Mosul, Iraq, and Raqqah, Syria, U.S. officials are encouraging Kurdish forces to support and empower the combat and post-conflict administration profile of non-Kurdish forces that may have greater ethnic and political legitimacy with local populations. U.S. officials also seek to avoid having U.S. cooperation with Kurds significantly disrupt U.S. relations with other partners, including the Iraqi central government and NATO ally Turkey in light of those partners' respective concerns and operations on the ground in Iraq and northern Syria.Legal authorities enacted by Congress and the President permit the Administration to provide some arms and some Iraq/Syria anti-IS-related funding to Kurdish groups under certain conditions. In April 2016, the Defense Department announced that it would provide more than $400 million in assistance to pay and otherwise sustain Iraqi Kurdish fighters as part of an ongoing partnership that delivers U.S. assistance to Iraqi Kurds with the consent of the Iraqi national government. Some Members of Congress proposed legislation in the 114th Congress that would have extended or expanded U.S. cooperation with Kurdish groups under certain conditions.