The Yemeni Army and Houthi rebels each exchanged 21 prisoners in a historic exchange on April 16 / credit: Anadolu Agency

News Dispatches from West Asia: Yemen’s Historic Prisoner Exchange and Palestinian Solidarity with 5,000 Prisoners

The possibility for peace has increased in Yemen with a historic prisoner exchange between Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces and Houthi rebels. Meanwhile, Palestinians stood in solidarity with 5,000 Palestinians in Israeli prisons on Prisoner Day, April 17. Peoples Dispatch / Globetrotter News Service reports.

A U.S. court’s ruling sends a clear message to Israel organizations intent on suppressing advocacy for Palestinian rights / credit: Alejandro Alvarez / SIPA USA

U.S. Court Tosses Israel Lobby Lawsuit Against U.S. Scholars

A court in Washington, D.C., has entirely dismissed a lawsuit against the American Studies Association over its support of an academic boycott of Israel. The lawsuit, which was filed in 2016 by Israel advocates, has now failed three separate times in court—a significant defeat for the Israel lobby’s attempt to punish scholars who back Palestinian rights. Nora Barrows-Friedman of Electronic Intifada reports.

Israel’s Pattern of Violating Palestinian Right to Education, As Bedouin Village Khan al-Ahmar Up for Demolition

This month, Israel’s Supreme Court gave the government until April 2 to respond to pro-settler Israeli NGO Regavim’s request to demolish the Bedouin village of Khan al-Ahmar. More than half of the village’s approximately 280 residents are children attending Khan al-Ahmar’s primary school, which could soon turn to rubble if the village is razed. However, Khan al-Ahmar’s students aren’t the only Palestinian children whose academic futures are under threat. Jessica Buxbaum reports from Palestine.