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Deep Contradictions Remain At The Core Of The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

The contradictions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are always on display, but rarely as starkly as this week, when the U.S. opened its embassy in Jerusalem and protests erupted in Gaza.
Israeli police stand guard in the main street of the Muslim Quarter of Jerusalem's Old City after Palestinian worshippers at Al-Aqsa Mosque took part in the first Friday prayers of the holy month of Ramadan.

The contradictions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are always on display, but rarely as starkly as this week, when the United States opened its embassy in Jerusalem and the militant group Hamas and others planned a protest at the same time that turned deadly.

In Jerusalem on Monday, hundreds of American and Israeli dignitaries gathered around a specially built stage at the newly designated embassy, while diplomats from most of the world stayed away. In Gaza, thousands of Palestinians approached — and in some places, stormed — the border fences that surround their small territory, and Israeli troops opened

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