All articles from Christa Case Bryant
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Olive Press Ultra-Orthodox insider invites outsiders in through the big screen
Director Rama Burshtein's film is a rare insider's look at Israel's ultra-Orthodox, without criticism or obsessing about what sets them apart.
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Olive Press On Gaza's border, an unexpected haven for mentally-handicapped Israelis
A factory in Sderot provides mentally-disabled people in Israel with work and a social environment where they can feel accepted.
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Olive Press Gazans struggle to reel in a livelihood
One man alone used to employ more than 2,000 fishermen to bring in Gaza's daily catch, but Israel has reduced the areas in which Palestinians may fish, curbing the number of accessible fish.
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Briefing: Palestinian factions agree to reconcile
Fatah and Hamas, the two main Palestinian factions, have put a three-month deadline on efforts to mend their long-standing differences.
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Olive Press Palestinian woman with prison legacy feels betrayed by her own
Umm Abdullah, whose husband is on his 14th turn in prison and has been imprisoned herself, is angry with Palestinian officials for cooperating with Israelis to arrest Palestinians.
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Olive Press Fashionable – and thrifty – amid fire in southern Israel
Liat Azran had two goals when she opened a hip secondhand clothing store in Sderot, which bears the brunt of rocket fire from Gaza: helping heal the town and encouraging sound financial judgement.
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In Israel, Women of the Wall hit raw nerve over religious clout in state life (+video)
Today, Israel's Women of the Wall went to the Western Wall to pray for the first time since a court said they could worship there without fear of arrest. But they met plenty of opposition.
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Olive Press Former Palestinian fighter now battles for a middle path
Palestinian Mohammed Dajani, a former Fatah fighter from a prominent Jerusalem family, has become a vocal advocate for pragmatism and peace.
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Israeli attacks inside Syria risk widening war
Israel, as well as Syria and its Lebanese-ally Hezbollah, has little interest in a wider conflict. But as Israel grows more assertive across its borders, the chance of a miscalculation is on the rise.
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Olive Press A shortage of water, but not hospitality, in the West Bank's fields
Abu Elias, a Jericho farmer, cultivates cucumbers, eggplants, ingenuity, and a good sense of humor.
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With air strike on Gaza, Israel tells Hamas 'get it together'
Israel's deadly strike today was a warning to Hamas to rein in more extreme militants, like the Salafist group that is firing rockets into Israel. Hamas is already on it.
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Olive Press Israeli first responder searches for the good among Sderot's rocket-pocked streets
One would expect Israeli Judith Bar-Hay to be angry after working for years in Sderot, which has been hit with more than 7,000 Palestinian rockets. She says that helping others keeps her sane.
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Cover Story Boston bombing reveals a new American maturity toward insecurity
The post-9/11 'new normal' has evolved: The tactical and emotional responses to the Boston Marathon bombings show what experts call a national maturity toward terrorism that echoes longer experience with such crises in England, Spain, Russia, Japan, and Israel.
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Olive Press Dancing around the conflict in Ramallah
Shyrine Ziadeh dreamed of studying ballet abroad, but once she realized how much she could help talented girls in Ramallah, she put aside that dream and opened her own studio.
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Hagel goes to Israel bearing gifts of radar and Ospreys
The US will give Israel advanced radar systems, more powerful missiles, and aircraft never before sold outside the US. Together, they could diminish Israel's sense of threat from Iran.
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Olive Press The trials of an Israeli Arab prosecuting Palestinians
Israeli Arab Arin Shaabi's job as a military prosecutor for the Israel Defense Forces puts her in the difficult position of handling the cases of fellow Arabs, earning her hatred from some.
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Olive Press Former Palestinian prisoners once jailed for murder, now dole out dessert
The two men behind one of Gaza's most famous kenafeh shops spent more than decade in Israeli prison for conspiracy to murder and planting bombs.
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Briefing Palestinian Prisoners' Day: Breaking down the controversy
This year's commemoration is particularly noteworthy because of two recent high-profile deaths in prison that drew tremendous outcry from Palestinians. The Monitor explains.
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Olive Press Israeli archaeologist finds common ground underneath Sinai's shifting sands
Avner Goren lived and worked among Bedouin in the shadow of Mt. Sinai for 15 years. Now he’s applying his knowledge of Arab culture to help bridge the Israeli-Arab divide.
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