Bethan Staton

Bio

Bethan is a writer and editor currently based in Palestine and Israel. She's written for a range of publications in the US, UK and Middle East, was previously a staff writer for The Day, where she wrote analysis on everything from fiscal policy to Rihanna lyrics for an audience of 16-year-olds.
The world's eyes are on Israel and Palestine, as the current crisis in Gaza has now led to the deaths of more than 600 Palestinians and 30 Israelis. While the latest round of violence has made headlines, it is not an isolated incident. On the…
Today, it seems hard to imagine that Israel would harbor any generosity towards Hamas. As its tanks, planes, and ships pound Gaza, and its governing powers respond with volleys of rockets, their enmity's tragic cost is rising by the hour.  Image…
Leave it to the Daily Show's Jon Stewart to be the person to perfectly sum up the current situation in Gaza. On its first episode after a two-week break, Stewart picks apart the hot-button headlines that he missed while he was away — including…
It's prime-time news on ABC, and Diane Sawyer is opening a report on a dramatic escalation in the Middle East. "We take you overseas, now, to the rockets raining down on Israel today," she says. The segment shifts to a photograph of two men near the…
News of the latest crisis in Palestine and Israel is rolling into headlines this week, perhaps invoking a dull sense of déjà vu for observers in the United States. Once again, targets all over the Gaza Strip are being hammered by air strikes. Again,…
It's a photo that shows the bleak future that is to come for Gaza: plumes of dark smoke greeted residents of Israel and Palestine as they woke up Tuesday morning, signaling the start of a dangerous new phase of the conflict.  On Monday night, Israel…
It was Thursday night when Gilad Shaer, Naftali Frenkel and Eyal Ifrach disappeared. The three Israeli teenagers were hitchhiking home from their schools in the West Bank, and were last seen near Gush Etzion, a settlement bloc. They never made it…
Back in 2007, a short film called West Bank Story won an Academy Award. The musical parodies West Side Story — telling a Romeo and Juliet-style tale of a Palestinian girl who falls in love with an Israeli soldier. The girl, Fatima, works at a…
It's been a tense 24 hours in Israel and Palestine. Last night, residents of Israel fled to bomb shelters as the Islamic Jihad, a militant organisation in Gaza, launched rockets at the southern part of the country. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF)…
From the windows of Area D, on the top floor of a central Ramallah high-rise, the view is astonishing. Past the fruit market and emerald-studded minarets is hilly, urban sprawl; beyond that, West Jerusalem. Psagot, a settlement, is closer. It is…
Boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) are big news in 2014. If Scarlett Johansson's Sodastream fiasco didn't grab your attention, perhaps the American Studies Association's boycott of Israeli universities did, or Netanyahu's increasing talk of…
In her controversial Sodastream commercial, Scarlett Johansson is sparkling. In her fluffy white bathrobe and little black dress, she gasps over her healthy, home-carbonated drink. "My favourite thing about SodaStream," she sighs, "is that I don't…
When news of Ariel Sharon's death at the age of 85 arrived on Saturday, the eulogies were ready. The eight years he had lain in a coma had given newspapers plenty of time to package the "trailblazing warrior-statesman," "father of Israel" and…
St. James's Church, Piccadilly is over 300 years old. Designed in the 1600s by one of Britain's greatest architects, Sir Christopher Wren, it's a photogenic, peaceful pocket in one of London's busiest and most famous spots. William Blake was…
It's Christmas Eve, and Bethlehem is getting ready for the biggest night of the year. A 50 foot tree stands sparkling over Manger Square, souvenir shops creak with religious trinkets, and pilgrims buzzed with sacred significance swarm about the…