LUISTER NAAR DE JOODSE STEMMEN OVER

DE ISRAELISCHE MEGA-MISDRIJVEN TEGEN

HET INTERNATIONAAL HUMANITAIR RECHT

JEGENS DE PALESTIJNEN !

THE JEWISH VOICE FOR PEACE - JVP

  LEES "THE WIRE" !

BERICHTEN NA 31-03-2025 STAAN HIER

25 april 2025

Bogotá / Brussels — April 2025

The Hind Rajab Foundation has formally filed a criminal complaint with the Colombian Attorney General’s Office against Gabriel Ben Haim, an Israeli-French dual national and active-duty sniper in the Israeli military, for his alleged involvement in grave violations of international humanitarian law, war crimes, and crimes against humanity perpetrated during Israel’s 2024–2025 military campaign in Gaza.

Ben Haim is identified as a member of the Refaim sniper unit, operating under the 35th Paratroopers Brigade of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). This unit is implicated in a systematic campaign of extrajudicial killings, targeting of civilians, attacks on medical infrastructure, and destruction of civilian property during incursions into Tel al-Hawa and Khan Younis, among other densely populated areas of the Gaza Strip.

A Deliberate and Systematic Pattern of Criminal Conduct

The evidence provided includes video documentation, social media records, geospatial analysis, and eyewitness testimonies. The Refaim unit, including Ben Haim, is credibly alleged to have:

• Engaged in lethal sniper fire against unarmed civilians, including individuals attempting to aid the wounded;

• Targeted medical personnel, including the documented killing of a nurse within the operating theater of Nasser Hospital;

• Participated in "sniper competitions" where soldiers openly celebrated kill counts and exchanged footage of civilian executions;

• Disseminated images of mutilated corpses, posed with for propaganda and psychological warfare purposes;

• Contributed to the widespread destruction of homes and civilian infrastructure without any apparent military necessity.

Social media analysis confirms Ben Haim’s operational presence in Gaza during these atrocities, and his integration within a sniper team that functioned as a cohesive unit with shared objectives, tactics, and execution of illegal operations. He is thereby individually and jointly responsible for the crimes committed by the unit.

Legal Basis for Colombian Jurisdiction

While the crimes occurred in the occupied Palestinian territory, the legal complaint rests on solid jurisdictional grounds under Colombian law, including:

Article 16 (6) of Colombia’s Penal Code, which enables the prosecution of foreign nationals present in Colombia for crimes committed abroad;

Colombia’s obligations under the Rome Statute, which it ratified via Law 742 of 2002, permitting domestic prosecution of international crimes including war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity;

The principle of universal jurisdiction, which allows states to prosecute grave crimes of international concern regardless of where they occurred or the nationality of the perpetrator or victims.

Ben Haim is currently present in Colombia, with recent geotagged public posts placing him in Cartagena and the Cocora Valley. There is a clear and present risk that he may leave the country imminently, evading legal accountability.

The Hind Rajab Foundation is calling for the immediate initiation of a formal investigation, issuance of a warrant for Ben Haim’s arrest, and preventive detention pending further proceedings.

A Global Duty to Prevent Impunity​

The complaint emphasizes that allowing individuals credibly implicated in international crimes to travel freely without scrutiny undermines the global fight against impunity and discredits international justice systems. The allegations against Ben Haim are not   speculative; they are supported by verifiable material and testimonial evidence.

The Hind Rajab Foundation will continue to pursue accountability for all individuals, regardless of rank or nationality, who have taken part in atrocities committed against the Palestinian people.

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1289.

25 april 2025

Last year, leading up the White House Correspondents’ Dinner where top journalists schmoozed with President Biden and other agents of genocide, Palestinian journalists from inside Gaza and around the world issued an urgent appeal to their colleagues in the west: Stand with us and stop whitewashing genocide.

In their powerful letter, they said: “The press plays an integral role in standing up against injustice by illuminating the truth and holding power to account. Journalists in Gaza cannot continue to bear the burden of doing so alone…It is unacceptable to stay silent out of fear or professional concern while journalists in Gaza continue to be detained, tortured, and killed for doing our jobs.”
 

At the time, 125 of their colleagues had already been assassinated by the Israeli military.

Today, as journalists prepare to convene for the same farcical dinner ‘honoring’ freedom of press, that number is at least 210—including most recently Hossam Shabat, Fatima Hassouneh, and Hamza Murtaja, whose names we say with love and reverence.

These journalists didn’t die by accident. They were targeted because they told the truth.

They stayed. They filmed. They wrote. They shared the reality the world was trying to look away from. And they paid the ultimate price—not for weapons, not for fighting—but for their words, their cameras, and their unstoppable will to bear witness.

Their courage is a beacon. And their legacy lives on in those who continue to report, under bombs and blockades, risking everything so that the truth cannot be buried.

But the truth is being buried and subverted—by western media institutions that have chosen complicity over conscience.

Instead of amplifying Palestinian voices, they’ve censored them.
Instead of honoring the dead, they’ve erased them.
Instead of reporting on the genocide, they’ve deflected and distorted it.

I recently sat down with my good friend Eman Mohammed, an award-winning Palestinian photojournalist from Gaza and Senior TED Fellow, now living in exile. In this powerful short video, she speaks about the murder of her colleagues, the complicity of the western media, and the unbreakable spirit of those still reporting from the rubble.

This is a coordinated campaign to silence. From social media takedowns, to the smearing of public figures like Ms. Rachel, to the abduction of students for protesting genocide—it’s clear: Palestinian voices are under attack globally.

That’s why, on this Global Day for Gaza, while you hit the streets in your city, share our interview with Eman to amplify Palestinian journalists' voices.

Because silence is complicity.  And truth-telling should never be a death sentence.

With fierce love and unwavering solidarity,

Rand J.
Adalah Justice Project

1288.

25 april 2025

Op 18 mei komen we in Den Haag in actie en trekken we een rode lijn. We eisen een einde aan Nederlandse medeplichtigheid aan Israëls oorlogsmisdaden. Doet u mee?

Praktische informatie
 Wat: Gezamenlijk een menselijke ketting vormen in Den Haag
 Wanneer: Zondagmiddag 18 mei

 Kleding: Trek rode kleding aan om de rode lijn zichtbaar en krachtig te maken

Het kabinet-Schoof zakt ver door een morele én juridische ondergrens. Ondanks Israëls voortdurende schendingen van het oorlogsrecht, trekt onze regering geen rode lijn en weigert deze actie te ondernemen om straffeloosheid en medeplichtigheid te stoppen.

Daarmee negeert de regering ook de oproep van een grote meerderheid van Nederlanders. Dat accepteren we niet!

Nederland, als gastland van het Internationaal Strafhof en het Internationaal Gerechtshof, maakt het pijnlijk duidelijk niet bereid te zijn om actie te ondernemen en blijft kiezen voor het voeren van zinloze gesprekken met Israël. Gesprekken die Israël keer op keer zonder consequenties naast zich neerlegt.

De tijd van woorden is allang voorbij, het is tijd voor actie.


Dit is een initiatief van Amnesty, Artsen zonder Grenzen, BDS, Oxfam Novib, Palestijnse Gemeenschap Nederland, PAX, Plant een Olijfboom, Save the Children en The Rights Forum. 

Onderzoek wijst uit: geen steun voor pro-Israëlbeleid kabinet

Zelfs binnen de traditionele pro-Israëlpartijen is het kabinet zijn steun kwijt. Van de VVD-kiezers staat nog slechts 32 procent achter het Israël/Palestinabeleid; van de PVV-kiezers 23 procent; van de CDA-kiezers 20 procent. Wat betreft de VVD en het CDA is sprake van een aardverschuiving.

Lees meer over de peiling >

Vacature | Stage lopen bij The Rights Forum

Ben jij maatschappelijk betrokken, kritisch en wil je bijdragen aan mensenrechten en rechtvaardig beleid rond Palestina/Israël? The Rights Forum is op zoek naar twee stagiair(e)s voor de periode mei t/m zomer/herfst 2025: een Stagiair(e) Politiek en een Stagiair(e) Campagnes.

Bekijk hier de volledige vacature >

Nieuwe locatie herdenking ‘4 mei inclusief’

Rondetafelgesprek | Hoe gaat het nu op de Westelijke Jordaanoever?

De laatste tijd zijn wat betreft bezet Palestijns gebied de ogen vooral gericht op Gaza. Maar hoe zit het op de bezette Westelijke Jordaanoever? Hoe zit het precies met de nederzettingen in het gebied? En hoe spelen Nederlanders een rol in de bezetting? Wat kunnen wij eraan doen? En wat voor toekomst zit er in het gebied?

The Rights Forum organiseert op woensdag 30 april (20.00 uur), samen met Amnesty International Nederland, Oxfam Novib, SOMO, Save the Children en PAX, een gesprek waarin die vragen centraal staan. De avond vindt plaats bij Debatpodium Arminius, Museumpark 3, Rotterdam.

Deze week op onze website

Defensieverdrag uitgesteld, maar militaire samenwerking gaat door

Militaire samenwerking gaat door
Desondanks gaat de militaire samenwerking met Israël gewoon door. Deze en komende week vindt in Marokko, Ghana, Senegal en Tunesië African Lion 25 plaats, een grootschalige, multinationale militaire oefening onder leiding van het Amerikaanse leger. Meer dan tienduizend troepen uit ruim veertig landen doen mee. En wat blijkt? Zowel Nederland als Israël zijn vertegenwoordigd.

Elke vorm van samenwerking met een leger dat verantwoordelijk is voor tienduizenden burgerslachtoffers, talloze oorlogsmisdaden en grove schendingen van het internationaal recht zou uit den boze moeten zijn. Maar voor de Nederlandse regering lijkt dit geen bezwaar.

Sterker, Nederland blijft Israël actief steunen – met handelsvoordelen, defensieverdragen en de levering van wapens waarmee in Gaza dagelijks burgers worden gedood. En nu dus ook met een militaire oefening. 

Steun onze campagne | Nobelprijs voor dokter Abu Safiya

Vorige week lanceerden wij onze campagne ter ondersteuning van de nominatie van dokter Hussam Abu Safiya voor de Nobelprijs voor de Vrede. Al ruim 25.000 mensen tekenden onze petitie. U ook?

Verder uit onze agenda
zaterdag 26 april t/m zaterdag 3 mei

Demonstraties en wakes
• Sit-in rijksambtenaren op donderdag 1 mei in Den Haag, Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken, Rijnstraat 8 (12.00 uur)
• Wekelijks protest tegen de genocide op de Palestijnen op donderdag 1 mei in Zaandam, bij de ingang van het station (17.30 uur)
• Wake op vrijdag 2 mei in Amsterdam, Spui (12.45 uur)

Culturele evenementen
• Openbare hoorzittingen van het Internationaal Gerechtshof in een zaak over Israël, de VN en andere landen in relatie tot de Palestijnse gebieden van maandag 28 april tot en met vrijdag 2 mei, via een livestream te volgen
• Paneldiscussie Hoe gaat het nu op de Westelijke Jordaanoever? op woensdag 30 april in Rotterdam, Debatpodium Arminius (20.00 uur)
• Palestine Emergency Reading Group op donderdag 1 mei in Tilburg, Universiteit Tilburg, ruimte M534 (13.00 uur)

1287.

25 april 2025

Today's headlines

Rafah no longer exists. This is part of Israel’s plan to permanently occupy Gaza

Israel has completely wiped out Rafah, turning a fifth of Gaza's territory into a giant buffer zone. This is part of Israel's plan to permanently remain in Gaza and ethnically cleanse its people.

I faced censorship and attacks at MIT for trying to teach about Palestine. This reflects the rising fascism in higher education.

A linguistics course I proposed to teach at MIT on decolonization in Haiti and Palestine was censored and attacked by the university. My story is just one small window into the broader crisis and repression unfolding in higher education.

1286.

24 april 2025

Humanitarian Situation Update #283
West Bank

One of 10 children displaced after Israeli forces demolished their homes in Ni‘lin, central West Bank, on 21 April 2025. Photo by OCHA

Key Highlights

• Displacement in the West Bank is on the rise; over the past week, Israeli forces ordered 14 families to leave their homes in Tulkarm city, while continuing to prevent tens of thousands of previously displaced people from returning to their homes in refugee camps in Jenin and Tulkarm.
• Seven additional families were displaced in Ramallah governorate, citing settler violence or by home demolitions for lacking Israeli-issued building permits.
• A Palestinian man died of a heart attack, which medical sources report was triggered by tear gas inhalation, during an Israeli settler attack where Israeli forces assaulted him and others.
• Six Palestinians were injured by Israeli settlers, including one who was shot and later had his leg amputated.
• Humanitarian concerns related to settlement activities are mounting; so far in 2025, Israeli authorities have advanced plans for over 15,000 settlement housing units, further entrenching a coercive environment that places many Palestinians at risk of forcible transfer.

Humanitarian Developments

• Between 15 and 21 April, Israeli forces killed six Palestinians, including one child, and injured at least 32 others, including 12 children, across the West Bank. During the same period, two Palestinians from the West Bank died in Israeli custody under unclear circumstances.
  • On 16 April, Israeli forces shot, killed and withheld the bodies of two Palestinians with whom they exchanged fire; the incident involved the use of shoulder-fired explosives by Israeli forces at a cave outside of Qabatiya village, south of Jenin.
  • On 17 April, Israeli forces shot, killed and withheld the bodies of two Palestinians, including a 16-year-old boy, who were reportedly throwing stones at Israeli vehicles on Road 90 near Osarin village, south of Nablus. Another Palestinian was injured. The incident followed the announcement of the death of a Palestinian from the village in Israeli custody (see below), three days before he was set to be released.
  • On 20 April, Israeli forces shot, killed and withheld the body of a Palestinian man near Homesh settlement, located between Nablus and Jenin governorates, north of Nablus city. According to the Israeli military and local sources, the man opened fire toward Israeli forces at the checkpoint near Homesh, causing no injuries. Following the incident, Israeli forces closed the road between Nablus and Jenin, restricting access in the area for a few hours. Homesh is one of four settlements in the northern West Bank that were evacuated in 2005 as part of Israel’s disengagement plan. Despite its evacuation, the settlement was later re-established as a religious school. In May 2023, the Israeli military lifted the ban on the entry of Israelis to the site and allocated land to a settlement regional council. Shortly after, Israeli settlers began erecting new structures as part of a broader Israeli initiative to “regularize” the settlement, which is built on privately-owned Palestinian land. Palestinian landowners have been denied access to their land ever since, with impact on their livelihoods.
  • Two Palestinian detainees died in unclear circumstances after they were transferred from Israeli prisons to hospitals between 17 and 21 April, according to the Palestinian Civil Affairs Authority, the Commission for Prisoners and Ex-Detainees Affairs, and the Palestinian Prisoners' Club. The first detainee was from Osarin village, in Nablus governorate, and had been detained since 22 March 2024. The second detainee was from Al 'Ubediya town, in Bethlehem governorate, and had been detained and hospitalized since 18 September 2023. According to the same sources, this brings the total number of Palestinians who have died in Israeli custody since 7 October 2023 to 65.
• Between 15 and 21 April, OCHA documented the demolition by Israeli authorities of nine structures for lacking Israeli-issued building permits, which are nearly impossible to obtain. Eight of them were in Area C and one in East Jerusalem. This led to the displacement of 18 Palestinians, including ten children, in one incident in Ni’lin village, in Ramallah governorate.
• On 16 April, Israeli forces punitively demolished an under-construction, semi-finished two-storey residential house in Jenin city. The house belonged to the family of two Palestinian brothers who were killed by Israeli forces in an exchange of fire on 5 July 2024 and were accused of killing an Israeli soldier on 27 June 2024. The family (comprising four people) was displaced during the killing of the two brothers, as the building was struck and destroyed by multiple shoulder-fired explosives and was set to return to the building once it was rebuilt. They reported receiving the punitive demolition order on 13 February 2025.
• Between 15 and 21 April 2025, OCHA documented at least 23 attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians that resulted in casualties or property damage. These attacks led to the death of one Palestinian and the injury of 24 Palestinians, six of whom were injured by Israeli settlers using metal sticks, pepper spray, and live ammunition or through physical assault and 18 by Israeli forces. Additionally, three families comprising nine Palestinians, including three children, were displaced citing settler violence.
  • On 17 April, Israeli settlers shot and injured a 60-year-old Palestinian man in the Ar Rakeez community of Masafer Yatta, in Hebron governorate. The man was working on his land with his 15-year-old son when armed Israeli settlers arrived and demanded they leave. When the farmer refused, the settlers began firing shots into the air and then shot the man in the leg. Residents called Israeli forces, who arrived at the scene and detained both the injured man and his son. The injured man was transported to Soroka Hospital in Israel, where his leg was amputated. Both the father and son were released after three days.
  • On 17 April, armed Israeli settlers, including some wearing military-like uniforms and known to the residents of Kobar village, in Ramallah governorate, stopped a Palestinian-owned vehicle at gunpoint and stole their mobile phones. When the Palestinians refused to hand over the vehicle and the five sheep loaded in it, the settlers called Israeli forces, claiming that one of the sheep had been stolen from them. The forces then confiscated the vehicle and the sheep and handed them over to the settlers. The two Palestinians were later detained at a nearby Israeli settlement, where they were reportedly blindfolded and handcuffed. They were released later that evening. Following the incident, a Palestinian family (comprising two people) decided to leave the village, citing ongoing violence by Israeli settlers in the western area of the village since the establishment of a new settlement outpost in March 2025. Since then, OCHA has documented six attacks by settlers against Bedouin families living on the outskirts of Kobar village. Four other Bedouin families reside in the area and have subsequently moved two livestock structures to an alternative location out of fear that settlers would steal their livestock.
  • On 21 April, a 48-year-old Palestinian man died of a heart attack, which medical sources report was triggered by tear gas inhalation. This happened after he was physically assaulted by Israeli forces, who also fired tear gas cannisters while accompanying Israeli settlers who raided Sinjil town, in Ramallah governorate. During the incident, Israeli forces injured 17 other Palestinians, including four children, and Israeli settlers physically assaulted and injured three Palestinians. The incident unfolded after Palestinians from the town gathered to access their lands and demonstrate against the establishment of a settlement outpost on privately-owned Palestinian land in Area B on the southern outskirts of the town the day before. According to local sources, more Israeli settlers gathered in the area and attacked the Palestinians with stones and metal poles, injuring three people. The settlers then proceeded to burn property, including four tents, three vehicles and an agricultural room. As a result, two Palestinian Bedouin households comprising seven people, including three children, were displaced; and some of their livestock was stolen or killed. The displaced families had moved to the area after being displaced in 2023 from Wadi As Seeq Bedouin community, in Ramallah governorate, citing settler violence and access restrictions.

• Humanitarian concerns related to settlement activities are mounting as the Israeli authorities are set to approve over 3,400 settlement housing units to expand Nofey Rachel and Gilo settlements in East Jerusalem (2,550 units), Givat Ze’ev settlement in Area C of Jerusalem governorate (16 units), Talmon and Ma’ale Amos settlements in Ramallah governorate (734 units), and Kfar Tapuah settlement in Salfit governorate (105 units), according to Israeli NGOs. According to Peace Now, an Israeli NGO, “since the beginning of 2025, including the plans slated for approval next week [starting 27 April], the [Israeli Higher Planning] Council has advanced a total of 15,190 housing units in less than four months,” an all-time record. Settlements are illegal under international humanitarian law as they violate Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which prohibits the transfer of the occupying power’s civilian population into occupied territory. The establishment and constant expansion of settlements has been a key driver of humanitarian vulnerability. Settlements and settler violence have deprived Palestinians of their property and sources of livelihood, restricted their access to services, triggered displacement, and contributed to sustaining a coercive environment that places many Palestinians in Area C, East Jerusalem and the H2 area of Hebron city at risk of forcible transfer, which in turn have generated demand for protection and assistance from the humanitarian community.
• In East Jerusalem, the Israeli NGO Ir Amim reported that the two plans for the expansion of Nofey Rachel and Gilo Southeast settlements will cover lands situated along the southern boundary of East Jerusalem, which would decrease geographic contiguity of the built-up areas and agricultural land of Palestinian communities. The Nofey Rachel plan on the western slopes of the Palestinian neighbourhood of Umm Tuba, which also serves as the main entrance to the neighbourhood, will further isolate the community, enclosing it and disconnecting it from other Palestinian areas, including Beit Safafa to its northwest and Beit Sahour and Bethlehem city to its south. The Gilo Southeast plan sets to establish 1,900 housing units on approximately 176 dunums (43.50 acres) of open land situated between Route 60 and the existing Gilo settlement. A large portion of the land is filled with Palestinian-owned olive groves belonging to the town of Beit Jala, in Bethlehem governorate, putting the groves at risk of being razed and owners at risk of being denied access to their lands and deprived of important sources of livelihood.
• During the Easter celebrations of Holy Saturday on 19 April, Israeli forces deployed dozens of flying checkpoints in and around the Old City of Jerusalem, including at the entrance to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, restricting access to the church. According to eyewitnesses and the Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, Israeli forces erected barriers and assaulted worshippers as they attempted to access the holy site. The entry of Palestinian Christians holding West Bank IDs into East Jerusalem was restricted through limited permits issued by Israeli authorities. Father Ibrahim Faltas, Vicar of the Custody of the Holy Land, reported that only 6,000 permits were issued by Israeli authorities this year to West Bank Christians. This is the second year in a row that only a small number of pilgrims were able to participate in Easter celebrations, as access restrictions within the Old City denied hundreds access to the church.

Developments in the northern West Bank

• On 23 April, Israeli forces shot and killed a 12-year-old Palestinian boy during a raid on the town of Al Yamun, west of Jenin. According to the Mayor, Israeli forces raided the town in jeeps and fired live ammunition at Palestinians who threw stones at them. Over 90 per cent of the 116 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces across the West Bank between 1 January and 24 April 2025 were in the six northern West Bank governorates of Jenin, Tubas, Tulkarm, Nablus, Qalqilya and Salfit. Seven Israelis, including five members of Israeli forces, were killed by Palestinians in the West Bank so far in 2025, all of them in the northern West Bank.
• Israeli forces continue to raid homes and public spaces as part of their ongoing operation in Jenin and Tulkarm cities. On 19 April, Israeli forces raided homes and vandalized property in Tulkarm city; they arrested a 15-year-old Palestinian boy and physically assaulted a photojournalist, confiscating his press card and phone. The following day, Israeli forces fired tear gas at two Palestinian journalists covering the operation at the entrance of Jenin camp, entry to which continues to be denied by Israeli forces.
• As tens of thousands of displaced people continue to be prevented from returning to their homes and communities in Tulkarm and Jenin, displacement by Israeli forces continues to expand to neighbourhoods surrounding the refugee camps in Tulkarm. According to the Tulkarm Municipality, between 20 and 21 April, Israeli forces ordered 14 families, mostly non-refugees, to leave their homes in the eastern neighbourhoods of Tulkarm city. The number of displaced people has been difficult to track, partly due to continuous attempts by families to return to their homes, with many displaced multiple times. Since the beginning of the operation by Israeli forces in the northern West Bank on 21 January, most people have been forcibly displaced in raids by Israeli forces, following displacement orders announced through quadcopters or the loudspeakers of mosques, and through Israeli military orders passed on to the Palestinian District Coordination and Liaison Office. In some cases, residents have been given less than 24 hours to leave and have attempted to return or retrieve their belongings but have been denied access, assaulted or detained by Israeli forces.
• Israeli forces continue to impose access restrictions in and around the northern West Bank cities as part of their ongoing operations. On 17 April, the Tulkarm Municipality initiated rehabilitation works on the Nablus-Tulkarm Road that had been agreed between the Palestinian and Israeli authorities. The works proceeded without interference until their completion in the early morning hours of 21 April, with the road fully prepared and layered with base course materials for public use. However, since then until the time of reporting, Israeli forces have prevented Palestinians from using the newly paved road. During the rehabilitation, Israeli forces instructed municipal staff to construct an earth mound around a building the forces have used as a military post. Furthermore, Israeli forces erected a checkpoint along the road, further obstructing access for Palestinian vehicular traffic, contrary to an initial agreement for it to open for public use. According to the municipality, since 20 April, soldiers have regularly prevented people’s access through the road, confiscated vehicle keys, and used several cars to block passage. Furthermore, on 23 April, Israeli forces installed four road gates at all the main entrances to Jenin refugee camp. These measures, combined with the ongoing military presence and reconfiguration of camps’ infrastructure, risk further preventing the return of displaced residents, with Jenin and Tulkarm refugee camps currently remaining largely empty. In February, the Israeli Defence Minister instructed Israeli forces to remain in the refugee camps for an extended period, with military posts already being established within camps alongside major bulldozing of infrastructure.

1285.

24 april 2025

Today's headlines

FBI and police raid homes of Palestine activists in Michigan

The FBI and other law enforcement agencies raided multiple homes in Michigan, reportedly targeting a number of student activists connected to Gaza solidarity protests at the University of Michigan.

Administrative detention of Raja Eghbarieh marks dangerous escalation for political oppression of ‘48 Palestinians

The Left Palestinian movement Abnaa el-Balad is calling for international solidarity in calling for the release of Raja Eghbarieh, an elder movement leader currently being held in administrative detention.

Inside the pro-Israel Dominican ultra-right that’s pushing for ethnic cleansing against Haitian immigrants

On March 30, a lynch mob led by neo-Nazi paramilitaries flew the Israel flag as it demanded Haitian workers be expelled from the Dominican Republic. The episode reveals the disturbing connections between the Dominican right-wing and Israel.

1284.

24 april 2025

Readers’ Recommendations

‘No mercy’: Israel keeps blocking aid amid systematic destruction of Gaza (Al Jazeera) 

1283.

23 april 2025

Did the ADL really turn over a new leaf?

Write to TIME magazine: Stop whitewashing the ADL's authoritarianism.

Demand Congress: Act now to secure the release of Mahmoud, Mohsen, and all other imprisoned student activists.

What we're reading: “Her smile was as magical as her tenacity."

In this interview with Democracy Now!, the director of the upcoming documentary film Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk speaks to the devastating loss of Palestinian photojournalist Fatma Hassona.

The 25-year-old was murdered alongside nine of her family members in an Israeli airstrike last week — just one day after she was informed that the documentary telling the story of her life and work would be premiering at the ACID Cannes 2025 film festival.

With nearly 100,000 subscribers, the Wire is one of the largest American publications dedicated to justice. Every week, we cover important news from Palestine, the United States, and the Palestine solidarity movement — and provide ways to take action.

Find the Wire useful?

1282.

23 april 2025

In today's Daily Brief:

• Indiscriminate Israeli Attacks on Lebanon

1281.

23 april 2025

Humanitarian Situation Update #282
Gaza Strip

Makeshift tents at a displacement site in the Mawasi area of Khan Younis, where thousands of internally displaced Palestinians have sought refuge amid ongoing hostilities and Israeli displacement orders. Photo: OCHA

Key Highlights

• Bombardment on Gaza, including on tents sheltering displaced people, continues to cause mass casualties while the aid blockade over the past 52 days has deprived people of the necessities for human survival.
• Insecurity and access constraints have forced humanitarian partners to close nutrition sites or significantly disrupted service delivery at a time when the nutrition situation in Gaza continues to deteriorate.
• Gaza’s health system remains critically strained, with severe shortages of medicine, equipment, and staff, and over half of functioning health facilities in areas under displacement orders.
• Israeli military strikes destroy over 30 heavy equipment vehicles, including critical equipment for search-and-rescue operations, waste removal, sewage maintenance, and water supply—raising serious public health concerns amid the ongoing crisis.
• Al Muntar water pipeline from Israel was successfully repaired. Two out of three water lines are currently functional, but fuel shortages are hampering water production and distribution.

Humanitarian Developments

• The Gaza Strip is now likely facing the worst humanitarian crisis in the 18 months since the escalation of hostilities in October 2023. Over the past 36 days, since 18 March 2025, Israeli forces have escalated bombardment from the air, land and sea across the Gaza Strip and expanded ground operations. This has resulted in hundreds of casualties, destruction of civilian infrastructure, and large-scale displacement. Fighting between Israeli forces and Palestinian armed groups have been reported, particularly in North Gaza and Rafah governorates. Strikes on residential buildings and tents of internally displaced people (IDPs) continue to be reported, alongside detonation of buildings, especially in Rafah and eastern Gaza city. As of 15 April, roughly 420,000 people are estimated to have been displaced again, according to the Site Management Cluster (SMC), with no safe place to go.
• Humanitarian operations have been stifled by a combination of expanded military activity, the Israeli government’s blockade on the entry of humanitarian aid and commercial supplies for 52 days (since 2 March), killing of aid workers and attacks on their premises, and severe movement restrictions within Gaza. In total, since 7 October 2023, at least 418 aid workers, including 295 UN staff, have been killed in Gaza. On 17 April, the Chief Executive Officers of 12 major aid organizations made an urgent plea to “all parties to guarantee the safety of [their] staff and to allow the safe, unfettered access of aid into and across Gaza through all entry points,” noting that since “Israeli forces resumed bombardments, at least 14 organisations reported Israeli fire directly or indirectly hitting their staff or aid facilities.” On 19 April, marking almost 50 days of total aid blockade on Gaza, acting Head of Office of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Jonathan Whittall, warned that people in Gaza are being starved, bombed, strangled and “deprived of the basic necessities for human survival,” calling it “deprivation by design” and what is seemingly the “deliberate dismantling of Palestinian life.” He reiterated the UN call for the lifting of the blockade, the entry of humanitarian aid, and the reinstatement of the ceasefire.
• According to the Ministry of Health (MoH) in Gaza, between 15 and 22 April, as of noon, 266 Palestinians were killed and 648 were injured. Many bodies remain under the rubble of destroyed structures, according to MoH. Since 19 January 2025, when the first phase of the ceasefire took effect, and as of 22 April, a total of 917 bodies were retrieved from across the Gaza Strip, according to MoH data. Between 7 October 2023 and 22 April 2025, the MoH in Gaza reported that at least 51,266 Palestinians have been killed and 116,991 Palestinians injured. This includes 1,890 people killed and 4,950 injured since the escalation of hostilities on 18 March 2025, according to MoH. On 17 April, MoH published the breakdown casualties in Gaza between 18 March and 17 April. Of the 1,691 people killed, 595 were children, 308 women, 105 elderly and 683 men. Among the 4,464 people injured, 1,610 were children, 842 women, 225 elderly and 1,787 men, MoH reported.
• Over the past week, two journalists were reported killed in Gaza. On 16 April, 10 Palestinians, including a female photojournalist, were reportedly killed when a residential building was hit in At Tuffah neighbourhood in eastern Gaza city. In another incident on 18 April, a journalist and 12 other Palestinians, including eight children, were reportedly killed when two residential buildings were hit in Tal Az Za'atar area in North Gaza governorate. The Palestinian Journalists Protection Center (PJPC) condemned the continued targeting of journalists, reporting that eight journalists have been killed since 18 March 2025 and that at least 17 journalists from Gaza are currently detained in Israeli prisons. This brings the total number of journalists killed since the beginning of the year to 18, most of whom were killed while on duty, PJPC added. In total, since 7 October 2023, 210 Palestinian journalists and media workers, including 29 female journalists, have been killed, according to the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate (PJS). Taking note of the heavy price that Palestinian journalists in Gaza are paying for their work, UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini stated that “time is long overdue to get international media into Gaza.”
• Attacks targeting tents sheltering IDPs across the Gaza Strip have significantly increased over the past week. Between 15 and 21 April, at least 23 incidents were reported in which IDP tents were struck, resulting in the reported killing of 78 Palestinians, including women and children, and the injury of dozens. In one of the incidents on 16 April in Al Mawasi area of western Khan Younis, 10 Palestinians, including four women, five children and one person with disabilities, were reportedly killed and burned alive when an IDP tent was hit. Several others sustained severe burns and critical injuries. On 17 April, the Executive Director of the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Catherine Russell, stated: “Airstrikes on tents in Gaza reportedly killed 15 children, including a child with disabilities who burned to death,” noting that “Images of children burning while sheltering in makeshift tents should shake us all to our core.”

• Between 16 and 21 19 April, other incidents resulting in fatalities were reported across the Gaza Strip, including the following:
  • On 16 April, at about 03:50, four children − two girls and two boys, all aged 10 years or younger − were reportedly killed when a residential building was hit in Jabalya Al Nazla, in southern North Gaza.
  • On 17 April, at about 12:20, six Palestinians, including children, were reportedly killed and others injured when a classroom at Al Ayyoubiya School, hosting IDPs, was hit in Jabalya camp, in North Gaza.
  • On 18 April, at about 14:00, nine Palestinians including women were reportedly killed and others injured when a residential building was hit in Az Zaytoun neighbourhood, in Gaza city.
  • On 18 April, at about 02:30, 10 Palestinians, including a whole family, were reportedly killed and others injured when a residential building was hit in Bani Suheila town, in eastern Khan Younis.
  • On 19 April, at about 00:00, three Palestinians including a man, a woman, and a one-and-a-half-year-old infant, were reportedly killed and 20 others, including at least 15 children, were injured when a residential building was hit in western Khan Younis.
• On 19 April, one Israeli soldier was killed in Gaza, according to the Israeli military. Between 7 October 2023 and 22 April 2025, according to Israeli forces and official Israeli sources cited in the media, more than 1,608 Israelis and foreign nationals were killed, the majority on 7 October 2023 and its immediate aftermath. This includes 408 soldiers killed, in addition to 2,612 soldiers injured, in Gaza or along the border in Israel since the beginning of the ground operation in October 2023. As of 22 April, it is estimated that 59 Israelis and foreign nationals remain captive in Gaza, including hostages who have been declared dead and whose bodies are being withheld.
• On 15 and 21 April, Israeli forces reportedly released 20 Palestinian male detainees through Kerem Shalom crossing, 10 on each day. Subsequently, detainees were reportedly transferred to the European Hospital in Khan Younis and Al Aqsa Hospital in Deir al Balah for medical examination.
• Fishers in Gaza continue to face significant risks at sea, exacerbated by restricted access, limited equipment, and ongoing insecurity. In addition to relying on fishing as a primary source of livelihood, the growing scarcity of food supplies in Gaza is also driving many to take the risk and go out to the sea. In April, several incidents were reported in which fishing boats were hit or came under fire near the shore, resulting in casualties among fishers. For example, between 14 and 21 April, four fishers were reportedly injured, and two boats were hit, with shooting towards the shore reported on multiple occasions in Rafah, Khan Younis and Deir al Balah.
• Between 2 and 20 March 2025, SMC partners conducted a monitoring analysis of 256 IDP sites hosting over 40,000 households across the Gaza Strip. While much of the data may be outdated due to changes in the context and ongoing population movements since 18 March, the SMC notes that the trends and dynamics recorded at the sites remain relevant. Key assessment findings include:
  • At 68 per cent of the sites, key informants reported that people sheltering at the sites had not received any humanitarian assistance in the past 30 days, while the 32 per cent of sites where at least half of people received assistance, food, water, and mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) were the most frequently reported types of assistance.
  • At 71 per cent of the sites, key informants reported that nobody or a few people had access to sufficient food. The most reported barriers to accessing food were the high cost of food (82 per cent), lack of food assistance (80 per cent), and unavailability of food (55 per cent).
  • At 60 per cent of the sites, nobody or few people had access to sufficient drinking water, estimated at six litres per person per day. Seventy per cent of key informants reported that water trucking was the main source of drinking water, followed by water purchased from desalination centres (14 per cent), while the main barriers to accessing drinking water were the lack of water tanks (60 per cent), lack of water containers (58 per cent), and the high cost of purchasing water (47 per cent).
  • At 78 per cent of the sites, key informants reported that nobody or few people had access to handwashing facilities, and 85 per cent reported that nobody or few people had access to sufficient hygiene items. Moreover, 54 per cent of key informants reported that people were using self-made, pit latrines, 38 per cent reported the use of static communal latrines, and 34 per cent reported the use of family latrines.
  • In the vast majority of the sites (93 per cent), environmental hazards were reported in the surroundings, including rodents and pests, solid waste, sewage, and other risks.
  • At 42 per cent of the sites, key informants reported that some shelters had been partially damaged (34 per cent) or destroyed (9 per cent). The main needs for shelter and non-food items included cooking items (71 per cent), lighting sets (60 per cent), and bedding items (45 per cent).
  • The top reported priority needs across all assessed sites included shelter and housing (24 per cent), household items (21 per cent), personal hygiene items (14 per cent), and food (11 per cent).

• Over 30 bulldozers and other heavy equipment vehicles, some donated during the ceasefire, have been bombed by Israeli forces in Gaza city, North Gaza and Khan Younis on 21 and 22 April. This includes heavy construction machineries, utility vehicles and mobile facilities. One of the strikes hit the garage of the Municipality of Jabalya An Nazla, in North Gaza. According the Municipality, the Israeli military strike destroyed all nine wheel loaders that were donated during the ceasefire, in addition to a sewage suction truck and a five-cubic-metre mobile water tanker. Furthermore, a manhole maintenance vehicle, five service vehicles, a 936 loader, two tractors, a garbage compactor truck, a solar distribution tanker, and a mobile generator to operate water wells all sustained partial damage. The municipality announced that all its services, including street clearance, waste removal, sewage line maintenance, and water services have been completely suspended, exacerbating the already dire situation and heightening the risk of disease.

Shrinking Humanitarian Space

• Between 15 and 21 April, out of 42 planned aid movements across the Gaza Strip that were coordinated with the Israeli authorities, 20 were denied, two faced impediments, 19 were facilitated, and one was cancelled. Out of 14 planned humanitarian assistance movements in or to northern Gaza that were coordinated with the Israeli authorities, eight were facilitated, four were denied and two faced impediments. These include 13 aid missions that needed to pass through the Israeli-controlled Wadi Gaza area between southern and northern Gaza. In southern Gaza, out of the 28 planned humanitarian assistance movements, 11 were facilitated, 16 were denied and one was cancelled.
• A new humanitarian access survey of 43 international and Palestinian aid organizations working in Gaza found nearly all of them – 95 per cent – have had to suspend or dramatically cut services since the escalation of hostilities on 18 March, with widespread bombing making it extremely dangerous to move around and the aid blockade by the Israeli authorities preventing all aid and goods from entering Gaza since 2 March. Twenty-four of the surveyed organizations reported increased movement restrictions within Gaza following the escalation of hostilities, impeding their ability to deliver aid.
• On 16 April, the premises of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Gaza were struck and damaged by an explosive. Noting that this was the second such incident in three weeks, ICRC emphasized: “These incidents impact the ability of the ICRC to provide essential protection and assistance to hundreds of thousands of people who need assistance to survive and contribute to an ever-shrinking humanitarian space. We condemn in the strongest terms any action that inhibits our ability to do our work and risks the lives of humanitarian workers.”
• According to recent market monitoring data and food security analysis in April, the blockade on the entry of humanitarian aid and other critical supplies, now surpassing 50 days, has exacerbated the fragility of the Gaza market. This has led to a sharp rise in food prices, high volatility, and significant shortages of essential commodities. Prices have surged significantly, rising between 150 per cent and 700 per cent over pre-October 2023 levels, and by 29 per cent to as much as 1,400 per cent above ceasefire prices. On average, April prices were 50 per cent higher than those recorded in March. Several key food items, such as dairy products, eggs, fruits and meat, have disappeared from the market, while the prices of potatoes and onions have surged by over 1,000 per cent compared with pre-October 2023 levels. This has profoundly limited food availability and the ability of families to feed themselves, particularly given low purchasing power and cash liquidity shortages. Additionally, according to the same analysis, a decline in food diversity was observed in April 2025. For example, compared with March 2025, the consumption of dairy products dropped from an average of two days per week to one day per week while the consumption of protein sources, including red and white meat and eggs, was roughly once per week and is now nearly nonexistent. As food stocks further dwindle and food aid continues to be blocked, WFP warned that “hundreds of thousands of people in Gaza are at risk.”
• The nutrition situation in Gaza continues to rapidly deteriorate, with the aid blockade preventing the entry of any food, nutrient supplements or therapeutic food for the treatment of malnutrition. In the first two weeks of April, nutrition cluster partners screened nearly 21,000 children for malnutrition, of whom 641 were diagnosed with moderate acute malnutrition and 64 with severe acute malnutrition (SAM). At the same time, insecurity and access constraints have forced partners to close nutrition sites or significantly disrupted service delivery. Since mid-March, data from partners show that 14 per cent (18 out of 130) of functional nutrition sites for blanket supplementary feeding distribution have been intermittently open and cases of acute malnutrition have surged. For example, over the past month, at the Patient’s Friends Hospital run by MedGlobal in Al Rimal, in Gaza city, an average of 3-5 children per week have been diagnosed with SAM with medical complications and admitted for treatment compared with a weekly average of 1-2 children in February. Overall, in March, the number of identified acute malnutrition cases reached 3,708 children compared with 2,053 cases of children diagnosed in February, while the reach of the screening was almost the same (84,000 versus 92,000). The approximately 2,000 cases of malnutrition identified in February, during the ceasefire, was the lowest figure recorded over the preceding eight months, since nutrition partners have been able to screen at least 60,000 children per month, the nutrition cluster reported.

• The health system in Gaza continues to face severe challenges that prevent the provision of adequate healthcare to people in Gaza. The shortages of medicine and medical supplies, the lack of medical equipment and the overwhelming caseload are among the main challenges. In addition, the functionality and accessibility of health service points have been severely affected by the security situation and the issuance of displacement orders, with 146 health service points (57 per cent of the partially or fully functional health facilities) in areas under displacement orders, creating serious access issues for communities needing urgent and essential health services. While the capacity of medical staff remains insufficient to manage the current caseload, the deployment of emergency medical teams (EMTs), supported by WHO, is one of the much-needed interventions to the ongoing health response. Currently, there are 21 functional EMTs including two in Gaza, two in North Gaza governorate, eight in Deir al Balah, eight in Khan Younis and one in Rafah.
• The widespread destruction of homes and critical infrastructure has resulted in an estimated 50 million tons of debris, severely impeding the movement of people and exposing Persons with Disability (PwD) to heightened risk during displacement. Since 18 March, at least 20 displacement orders have been issued, sometimes with only minutes’ notice, forcing residents to flee under extreme pressure. PwD face compounded challenges due to the lack of structured support systems and assistive devices, further restricting their access to essential services and the limited lifesaving humanitarian aid available in the Gaza Strip. Meanwhile, humanitarian partners continue to operate under significant constraints, which is limiting their access to displaced populations, heightening the risk that the most vulnerable are left behind.
• UNDP and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), co-leading the Debris Management Working Group, have been implementing a joint pilot initiative focused on debris removal in priority areas—such as main roads, access points to hospitals, and school facilities—to enable humanitarian movements and operations. This work is coupled with efforts to recycle debris for potential use in future infrastructure rehabilitation and reconstruction. Between December 2024 and March 2025, prior to the collapse of the ceasefire, UNDP facilitated the removal of 35,275 tons of debris, using heavy machinery to clear and recycle materials efficiently. To date, debris recycling efforts have successfully repurposed 1,075 tons of material for infrastructure repairs, including road rehabilitation, solid waste dumpsite improvements, and access routes to water tanks, in collaboration with municipalities and other partners. In parallel, UNDP has visited 180 of the 386 sites designated for Explosive Ordnance (EO) risk assessment by the UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS). Yet, debris removal operations in Gaza continue to face significant operational challenges: fuel shortages are hampering the use of heavy machinery essential for large-scale clearance; the availability of machinery is limited, with many destroyed during hostilities; damaged roads and EO contamination delay removal and transport operations; insecurity negatively impacts workers’ safety and restrict community engagement; and disputes over land designation and space limitations are complicating the establishment of temporary debris storage and processing sites.
• Following the escalation of hostilities on 18 March, most Mine Action (MA) activities have been suspended due to the deteriorating security situation, with only one Explosive Hazard Assessment (EHAs) and 23 inter-agency missions (IAM) conducted, according to the MA area of responsibility (AoR). UNMAS maintained a team of four to six Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) officers in Gaza, compared with 12 officers during the ceasefire, providing support to priority activities, including body recovery operations, inter-cluster missions, rotations of international staff, and medical evacuations. Coupled with import restrictions by Israeli authorities on the entry of essential safety and demining equipment since October 2023, ongoing hostilities are likely exacerbating existing explosive ordnance contamination across Gaza, increasing risks for both civilians and humanitarian responders alike, MA AoR warns. Between January 2025 and 22 April, MA partners reported 21 incidents involving unexploded ordnance (UXO), resulting in three fatalities and 45 injuries, including two children killed and 20 children injured. Meanwhile, MA partners continue to carry out risk education sessions where possible, with over 11,500 sessions conducted in the first three months of 2025, reaching over 209,000 people. In total, between 1 January 2024 and 22 April 2025, MA partners provided 486 EHAs for routes and sites of UN and humanitarian actors, leading to 357 sites assessed as low risk and recommended for use for humanitarian assistance, and provided EHA support to 503 IAM.
• On 16 April, the Al Muntar water pipeline from Israel, which had been non-functional since 3 April, was successfully repaired after access to the area in eastern Gaza governorate was secured. Two out of the three Mekorot pipelines are now operational. Referring to the development, Gaza city Municipality underscored that water shortages persist and are most acute in the northern and southwestern areas of the city, where further repairs to the network are needed before water can be delivered. Fuel shortages pose an additional challenge, since in the absence of electricity, water production and distribution are mainly reliant on fuel to pump water from wells, pump water through networks, desalinate drinking water and carry out water trucking activities. According to the WASH Cluster, partners have been forced to further increase rationing of fuel supplies, which is hampering critical service delivery. This is compounded by the nearly depleted stocks of critical chemicals, such as chlorine, which is necessary for water disinfection to decrease the risk of water-borne diseases.
• The WASH Cluster reports that the extensive damage to sewage infrastructure is leading to the accumulation of untreated wastewater in stormwater ponds, posing significant public health and environmental risks. At imminent risk of flooding is the Al Saftawi stormwater basin in southern Jabalya, in North Gaza, originally designed to collect rainwater from a 1.25-square-kilometre catchment area, with a total capacity of 27,000 cubic metres. Under normal conditions, stormwater is discharged into the sea through a pump station and pressurized line. However, due to significant damage to both the sewage network and the discharge infrastructure, the basin is now also receiving large volumes of untreated sewage and is unable to release its contents. The basin's water level has now reached six metres—just below the 6.2-meter flood threshold—posing an imminent risk to surrounding residential neighbourhoods. Such an event would have severe consequences for public health in an already vulnerable area, the WASH Cluster warns.

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22 april 2025

Notorious far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir has landed in the United States for a week-long series of talks and meetings to spread his ideological extremism. Once convicted on terrorism charges, Ben Gvir now heading the ultranationalist "Jewish Power" political party is being welcomed by the U.S. authorities to raise money for his political plans and meet with government officials.

Meanwhile, our own director Issa Amro just returned for a ten day educational tour of the U.S. where he gave lectures and talks on our human rights work, the power of nonviolence, and the humanitarian and political situation in Hebron. Amro has encountered and confronted Ben Gvir and disrupted settler land-taking actions in Hebron.

This issue is a battle against oppression, apartheid, and annexation. As such, we'd like to bring an update about who Ben Gvir is and the nature of Israel's settlement project.

Who is Ben Gvir?

Itamar Ben Gvir lives in the illegal settlement of Kiryat Arba on the outskirts of Hebron where he has partaken in many ideologically extreme actions and events against the local Palestinian community. Ben Gvir celebrates the Ibrahimi Mosque Massacre of 1994 where an American-born Israeli settler named Baruch Goldstein entered the Mosque and shot dead 29 Palestinian worshippers and wounded more than 100 others, including children. Ben Gvir not only joins the Hebron settlers to pray at Goldstein's grave, he also had this mass murderer's portrait hanging in his living room for years. Ben Gvir was convicted by Israeli courts of support for the outlawed Israeli terrorist organization Kach of whom Goldstein was a member.

Ben Gvir has stated his racist and extremist ideology explicitly, calling for numerous measures that treat Palestinians as inferior and undeserving of the basic dignities of life. Ben Gvir is known to distribute weapons to Israeli settlers, a step toward the creation of settler paramilitaries and death squads. Ben Gvir has called for the expulsion of Palestinians with Israeli citizenship, and he has called on Israeli police to shoot Palestinian protesters. He also adcovates for the right of Jewish Israelis to move around in occupied territories at the expense of Palestinian freedom of movement.

When an Israeli soldier unprompted assaulted human rights defender Issa Amro in Hebron in front of Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Lawrence Wright, Ben Gvir supported the soldier and condemned the latter's prosecution. When the Gaza ceasefire was first implemented, Ben Gvir resigned from his position as National Security Minister. While Palestinian children are starving, Ben Gvir called for not "a gram of food or aid" to enter Gaza.

Director Issa Amro

Friends of Hebron

Working for Peace and Justice

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22 april 2025

Today's headlines

How European governments are using deportation to disrupt and criminalize Palestine solidarity

It is not just pro-Palestinian students in the U.S. who are facing the threat of deportation. Anti-genocide activists in Germany and Greece are also currently under threat of deportation, an unprecedented move to quash popular support for Palestine.

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Readers’ Recommendations

• Israeli strikes kill dozens as UNRWA warns Gaza crisis at its worst since October 2023 (The New Arab) 

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20 april 2025

Today's headlines

How Christian Zionism is helping to crucify the birthplace of Christ

Qassam Muaddi

As both Eastern and Western Christians prepare to celebrate Easter, the divide between Palestinian Christians and those in the West has never been larger. The core of this divide is the racist theology of Christian Zionism.

Amid the tug-of-war of ceasefire negotiations, cracks in Israeli politics start to show

Qassam Muaddi

Internal dissent in Israel’s military establishment is pushing the government to sign a ceasefire deal that would return Israeli captives at any cost. Netanyahu might find a political way out by promising right-wing allies that the West Bank is next.

From the encampment to the classroom: suppressing Palestine education mirrors attacks on student activism

As students protesting the Gaza genocide encounter violent repression, the push to integrate Arab American Studies and Palestine into Ethnic Studies faces censorship and political attacks as well.

The Israeli settlers quietly waging war on the Palestinian countryside

Jessica Buxbaum

Israeli settlers are taking over Palestinian land by creating "farming outposts" with the goal of ethnically cleansing Palestinians. This strategy complements the Israeli state's broader plans for annexing the West Bank.

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19 april 2025

The Hind Rajab Foundation filed a case in the U.S. against Israeli soldier Yuval Shatel. He is accused of war crimes, conspiracy, and genocide under 18 U.S.C. §§ 2441, 371, and 1091. Evidence includes videos of unlawful demolitions of homes, a school, and a mosque in Gaza

Shatel was last seen in Texas 4 days ago; his current whereabouts are unknown.

U.S. law and the Geneva Conventions require immediate investigation and prosecution.

Read the full press release below.

April 2025 – Washington, D.C. / Brussels

​The Hind Rajab Foundation has filed a request for prosecution in the United States against Yuval Shatel, an Israeli soldier accused of serious violations of international humanitarian law during Israel’s military campaign in Gaza.

The request, which outlines the evidence and criminal charges against Shatel, was submitted to both the U.S. Department of Justice and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and calls for Shatel’s immediate arrest and prosecution under U.S. federal law for:

War crimes under 18 U.S.C. § 2441

Conspiracy to commit war crimes under 18 U.S.C. § 371

Genocide and conspiracy to commit genocide under 18 U.S.C. § 1091

Who Is Yuval Shatel?

Yuval Shatel served as a sergeant in the 435th Rotem Battalion, Givati Brigade, an elite Israeli military unit. During his deployment in Gaza, Shatel allegedly took part in the deliberate destruction of civilian homes, schools, and places of worship—acts prohibited by both U.S. and international law.

Publicly posted videos from Shatel’s own Instagram account show him detonating an apartment block in Khan Younis and celebrating its destruction. Other footage shows him involved in the demolition of the Tiberias Primary School and the Hassan Al-Banna Mosque—both protected civilian structures with no military use.

Last Seen in Texas — Now Missing

Shatel was last seen in Texas four days ago. Since then, his whereabouts are unknown. The Hind Rajab Foundation has expressed serious concern that he may be attempting to flee U.S. jurisdiction to avoid prosecution.

“There is clear and present risk of flight. The evidence is overwhelming, the jurisdiction is clear, and the moral obligation is beyond dispute. U.S. authorities must act immediately,” said Samuel Jacob Romm, the Hind Rajab Foundation’s representative in the United States.

What the Evidence Shows

The request includes:

Video evidence of Shatel detonating civilian buildings

Photographs of Shatel and other soldiers inside occupied civilian homes

Social media posts celebrating acts of destruction and calling for revenge

Visual confirmation of collaboration with at least ten other soldiers from his unit

These actions are presented not as battlefield engagements, but as deliberate, recorded, and celebratory operations designed to punish and terrorize the civilian population—behavior that constitutes grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions and violates U.S. law.

Broader Genocide Allegations

According to a January 2025 Reported Impact Snapshot by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, 92% of all housing units in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed. The Foundation argues that such widespread and systematic destruction is not incidental but intentional—part of a broader effort to render Gaza uninhabitable, and to subject Palestinians to conditions of life that are intended to cause their physical destruction in whole or in part.

Shatel’s actions, the Foundation argues, are not isolated, but representative of a pattern of conduct contributing to genocidal conditions in Gaza.

Why the U.S. Has Jurisdiction

Although the crimes were committed in Gaza, U.S. federal courts have jurisdiction because Shatel is present on U.S. soil. Under the War Crimes Act and Genocide Statute, foreign nationals can be prosecuted in the United States if they are physically present in the country, regardless of where the crimes occurred.

The U.S. is also bound by its obligations under the Geneva Conventions to search for and prosecute those responsible for grave breaches of the Conventions.

What the HRF Is Demanding

The Hind Rajab Foundation is calling on U.S. authorities to:

• Open a full criminal investigation

• Issue an arrest warrant without delay

• Locate and detain Shatel to prevent him from fleeing the country

• Commence prosecution in a competent U.S. federal court

“Justice must not depend on passports or politics. The presence of this suspect in the U.S. is a test of whether American law will rise to meet the challenge of international crimes,” said Dyab Abou Jahjah, Chairman of the Hind Rajab Foundation. “If we are serious about ending impunity, then it starts here—and it starts now.” 

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

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The U.S. crackdown on Palestine activism is escalating

This week, we witnessed an alarming expansion of the Trump administration’s efforts to silence dissent by focusing on marginalized groups that have dared to speak out against Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza, its apartheid system, and the oppression of the Palestinian people. The administration is broadening its crackdown on free speech, especially targeting student activists and political dissidents, by using legal and political mechanisms to crush political opposition. D. Musa Springer, a U.S. citizen, was detained and interrogated when they traveled back into the United States. These attacks on activists and organizations, particularly among Black, Muslim, and other marginalized communities, are an undeniable effort to suppress resistance movements that threaten the status quo. The Trump administration’s use of accusations of “antisemitism” to justify these repressive actions is an affront to free speech and political activism. And of course, it is not about the safety of Jewish communities. Rev. Graylan Scott Hagler published a call to “continue to fight, even when you are weary.“

At the same time, Israel escalates its brutal campaign of occupation and genocide. The conditions in Gaza are dire, with widespread displacement, mass casualties, and destruction of vital infrastructure. Palestinians are enduring unimaginable hardship. Reports of worsening conditions for prisoners in Israeli detention—torture, starvation, and abuse—reveal the systemic cruelty Palestinians are subjected to on a daily basis. In the West Bank, Israel is pushing forward with its “Iron Wall” offensive, further dividing the region and accelerating the annexation of Palestinian land. The calls from Gaza’s General Federation of Trade Unions and others for action against the genocide reflect the urgent need for global grassroots solidarity in the face of the international community’s failure to act. As Israel’s crimes intensify, Palestinians remain resolute in their struggle for justice.

It’s clear that the battle for justice for Palestine is not just a fight against occupation, apartheid, and genocide—it is a global struggle for the right to dissent, to speak freely, and to challenge injustice. This week’s articles highlight the intersection of these struggles, showing how efforts to silence dissent in the U.S. are part of a broader campaign to protect the systems of oppression that sustain Israel’s apartheid policies.

Finally, we want to thank our readers for their incredible support during our recent Spring Fundraising Campaign. We exceeded our stretch goal of $100,000, and we couldn’t have done it without you. If you weren’t able to contribute, it’s not too late! Please consider making a donation today to help us continue our critical reporting. Your support is what makes this work possible.

Thank you for being part of this fight for justice.

David Reed, Publisher

Catch-up

= The student movement for Palestine is grappling with strategic stagnation. At this pivotal moment, as Israel intensifies its genocide and the West strips rights to free speech, we must reassess our efforts to face these urgent challenges.

= Palestinian prisoners in Israeli detention are subjected to conditions of torture, starvation, and torment that are the worst they have been since 1967.

= The Trump administration’s recent investigation of 60 schools for “antisemitic discrimination” appeared to target campus protests. But a closer look shows it was driven by pro-Israel groups’ use of civil rights law to push a broad right-wing agenda.

= The U.S. claims its attacks on Yemen are out of self-defense, and that it has the UN Security Council’s support. These are both lies. The lawlessness of the U.S. in support of Israel’s genocide in Gaza should send alarm bells across the globe.

= Qassam Muaddi: Israel is expanding its “Iron Wall” offensive in the West Bank as it approves plans to separate the northern West Bank from the south. The plan is an accelerated prelude to Israel’s expected annexation of the West Bank.

= When the bombing of hospitals was still taboo in October 2023, Israel denied bombing al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza City. This time, Israel claims it targeted a Hamas command-and-control center at the hospital. It has not provided any evidence.

= On April 17, the one-year anniversary of the Columbia University Gaza encampment, academic workers, students, and activists are calling for a coordinated national direct action to protest the ongoing genocide and escalating repression in the U.S.

= The objective of the new film “October 8” is not to impart information but to cause panic— a panic the filmmakers hope will lead viewers to support the violent crackdowns on student Palestine activists that we are seeing across the U.S. right now.

Hamas’s application to the UK Home Secretary to remove its designation as a terrorist organization aims to build international support for Palestinian resistance and affirm the group’s role as a political actor in determining the future of Gaza.

= Donald Trump’s surprising announcement that talks are starting with Iran gives the White House a pivotal choice: follow pro-Israel hawks calling for a military confrontation with Iran, or chart a diplomatic course that could avert a disastrous war.

= Qassam Muaddi: Despite widespread participation in a general strike protesting the genocide in Gaza, organized Palestinian forces in the West Bank are experiencing a “moment of weakness,” civil society activists say, due to Israel’s campaign of terror.

= The Trump administration has reportedly revoked hundreds of student visas amid a widening crackdown on the U.S. Palestine movement, with one attorney estimating as many as 1,000 visas have been canceled at universities across the country.

In a scathing letter, Mahmoud Khalil writes from an ICE detention center in Louisiana, blasting Columbia University’s role in his abduction and the targeting of other student activists by the Trump administration.

= Palestinian Christians are condemning the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops for collaborating with the American Jewish Committee on an online resource that defines Palestinian resistance as antisemitic.

1274.

19 april 2025

Today's headlines

‘We smelled the stench of burning human flesh’: Israel burns 8 children to death in Gaza ‘safe zone’

Tareq S. Hajjaj

Israel targeted displaced Palestinians in a tent encampment in the Mawasi area of Khan Younis, designated for civilians. Eight children were burned alive and charred beyond recognition alongside six others.

Palestinian elites threw a huge party for the opening of a megamall in Ramallah — as bombs ripped through Gaza

Abdaljawad Omar

The festive inauguration of Ramallah’s Icon Mall as the Gaza genocide continues shows that Palestinian elites are not simply indifferent, but shameless. Yet, many who do feel shame act as if it is the only remaining way to politically engage.

Meet Trump’s radical new antisemitism envoy

Mitchell Plitnick

Meet Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun. A long-time friend of Miriam Adelson, he has deep ties to the far-right of the Jewish community. Soon, he will be leading the charge to criminalize Palestine solidarity as Donald Trump's envoy to "combat antisemitism."

Breaking through the stalemate in the student movement for Palestine

Engy Sarhan and Vivian Ho

The student movement for Palestine is grappling with strategic stagnation. At this pivotal moment, as Israel intensifies its genocide and the West strips rights to free speech, we must reassess our efforts to face these urgent challenges.

1273.

18 april 2025

Today's headlines

‘They told my brother I was dead’: inside Israel’s psychological warfare against Palestinian prisoners

Palestinian prisoners in Israeli detention are subjected to conditions of torture, starvation, and torment that are the worst they have been since 1967. My brother has been imprisoned amid these conditions for over a year.

‘My experience confirms that US ‘citizens’, especially Black and Muslim ones, are also targets’ – Musa Springer on his unlawful detention

Mondoweiss writer D. Musa Springer was detained, interrogated, and had electronic devices confiscated by DHS agents upon returning from international travel. Here he details his experience and warns it shows the Trump assault on dissent is expanding.

How the Trump administration is using civil rights complaints over ‘antisemitism’ to end DEI and quash dissent on Palestine

The Trump administration's recent investigation of 60 schools for "antisemitic discrimination" appeared to target campus protests. But, a closer look shows it was driven by pro-Israel groups' use of civil rights law to push a broad right-wing agenda.

1272.

18 april 2025

Humanitarian Situation Update 281
West Bank

Seven-year-old Layyan Mehrab plays on her bicycle with her chicken—her only remaining pet—after Israeli authorities demolished her home and animal shelter in Nablus. During this time, Israeli settlers stole her two dogs, cat and several birds. Photo: OCHA

Key Highlights

• Some Bedouin and herding communities in Area C fear heightened violence by Israeli settlers from nearby herding outposts after a recent Israeli military order designated large swathes of land near their communities for grazing purposes.
• New closures along Road 60, the West Bank’s main north-south artery, intensify movement restrictions amid expanding road infrastructure and land requisitioning orders, affecting tens of thousands of Palestinians in Ramallah and Nablus governorates.
• Punitive demolition incidents have displaced 68 people so far in 2025, compared with 100 displaced within the same context throughout 2024.
• Displacement in Area C by demolitions due to the lack of building permits increased five-fold between 1 January and 15 April, compared with the corresponding period in 2024.

Humanitarian Developments

• Between 8 and 14 April, Israeli forces killed two Palestinians, including one child, and injured at least 110 others, including 21 children, across the West Bank.
  • On 8 April, Israeli forces shot, killed and withheld the body of a Palestinian woman from Biddya town, in Salfit governorate, who allegedly threw stones at Israeli forces and approached them with a knife near Ariel settlement.
  • On 14 April, Israeli forces shot and killed a 17-year-old Palestinian boy and injured three Palestinians during an operation in Al Jalazun refugee camp in Ramallah governorate. During the operation, Palestinians threw stones at Israeli forces, who shot live ammunition and tear gas canisters at the Palestinians. The boy was pronounced dead at the hospital, after the ambulance transporting him was forced to take a longer route due to road closures imposed by Israeli forces near the camp.
• Between 8 and 14 April, OCHA documented the demolition of 44 structures across the West Bank, including 40 demolished by Israeli authorities in Area C and four demolished in East Jerusalem, for lacking Israeli-issued building permits, which are nearly impossible to obtain. This led to the displacement of 65 Palestinians, including 37 children, and otherwise affected 90 people who had agricultural and other livelihood structures or water and sanitation facilities demolished. The majority of people displaced in Area C (43 out of 54) were in As Samu’ town in Hebron (17 people), Bruqin village in Salfit (16 people), and in Nablus city (10 people), all on 8 April. During the demolition incident in Nablus, Israeli settlers were present and stole two dogs, a cat, and several birds from a demolished animal shelter. These animals belonged to a seven-year-old girl who was displaced with her family. On the same day, 15 structures were demolished in Area C of Beit Liqya village, in Ramallah governorate, including two wedding halls, an unfinished residence, a storage space, an agricultural structure, a water cistern and eight other structures that were built on a seven-dunum (1.7 acres) piece of land, affecting the livelihoods of nine households comprising 37 people.
• So far in 2025, in addition to displacement due to operations by Israeli forces in the northern West Bank (see below), displacement due to lack-of-permit demolitions in Area C have significantly increased compared with the corresponding period in 2024. Between 1 January and 14 April 2025, 456 structures, including 56 donor-funded structures, were demolished by Israeli authorities in Area C for lacking building permits, resulting in the displacement of 445 people, including 112 children. This is a five-fold increase in displacement and a two-fold increase in the number of demolished structures compared with the corresponding period in 2024, when 224 structures, including seven donor-funded structures, were demolished and 91 people were displaced, including 46 children. The increase is linked to several mass demolition incidents, such as the displacement of 46 people in Khallet Athaba’ community in Hebron on 10 February and their second displacement on 26 February, when residential tents provided to them as humanitarian assistance in response to the first demolition were demolished by Israeli authorities. In the first two weeks of April, 165 Palestinians were displaced by demolitions due to the lack of building permits in Area C, accounting for more than a third of displacement in Area C since the beginning of the year.
• Between 8 and 14 April, Israeli forces carried out two punitive demolitions in areas A and B of the West Bank, displacing seven people, including four children. On 9 April, a house located on the second floor of a two-story building was demolished in Area B of Deir Ibzi’ village in Ramallah governorate, displacing a woman and her four children. The house belonged to a man who was killed in an Israeli airstrike following an exchange of fire with Israeli soldiers after he opened fire at, and caused damage to, an Israeli settlers’ bus near Dolev settlement, in Ramallah governorate, on 22 March 2024. Seven Israeli soldiers were injured in the incident, one of whom succumbed to his wounds the following day. In the second incident, a home was demolished on punitive grounds in Area A of Tulkarm city on 10 April, displacing two people, including a Palestinian man who has been detained since February 2024 and was accused of carrying out a shooting attack on 2 November 2023 near Beit Lid village in Tulkarm, which caused an Israeli vehicle to overturn and killed a member of Israeli forces. So far this year, 11 punitive demolition incidents have been documented by OCHA in the West Bank, the highest number of such incidents compared with any parallel period since OCHA began documenting demolitions in 2009. Moreover, 65 people have been displaced by punitive demolitions during the same period, compared with 100 displaced within the same context throughout 2024.
• Between 8 and 14 April 2025, OCHA documented 16 attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians that resulted in casualties or property damage. These attacks led to the injury of 11 Palestinians, ten of whom were injured by Israeli settlers using stones, sticks or pepper spray, and one by live ammunition fired by Israeli forces during clashes with Palestinians, who threw stones, when Israeli settlers trespassed into the area of Solomon’s Pools, in Bethlehem governorate, during the Jewish holidays. Among the injured were three Palestinians, including a child, who were physically assaulted with sticks by settlers from a newly established outpost while they were picnicking near Kobar village, in Ramallah governorate, and three women who were physically assaulted by settlers, one with the wooden part of an axe and two with sticks, while working on agricultural land in Al Mughayyir village, also in Ramallah, or grazing their sheep in the Masafer Yatta area of Hebron. Other incidents included an arson attack in which settlers set fire to a wedding hall in Biddya town, in Salfit governorate, and vandalism of over 100 beehives in the Farsh al Hawa area of Hebron city. In five incidents, Israeli settlers threw stones at Palestinian vehicles, causing damage to six vehicles. In one incident in the Nablus governorate, Palestinians thew stones at Israeli settlers’ vehicles, causing damage to one vehicle.
• On 9 April, Barriyet al Maniya herding community in Bethlehem governorate was completely emptied of its Palestinian residents when four Palestinian families comprising 32 members, including 20 children, were forcibly displaced. This followed a series of attacks by Israeli settlers, including vandalism of property, restricting access to grazing areas, and intimidation. Settlers are believed to be from a nearby outpost that was established near Barriyet Taqu’ after 7 October 2023. Since 7 October 2023, OCHA has documented 29 settler incidents in this community and the surrounding areas, of which 22 resulted in casualties or property damage. The four families, who were the last to remain in the area, have been able to take their sheep but have had to leave behind their shelters.
• Between October 2023 and October 2024, 43 new settlement outposts, primarily farm outposts, were established in the West Bank, compared with an annual average of seven outposts in the nearly three decades prior, according to Peace Now, an Israeli NGO. All settlements are illegal under international humanitarian law. Outposts are settlements that have been established in contravention of Israeli law as well, but with the acquiescence and often active support of the Israeli authorities. Peace Now reported that the Israeli government financed settlement outposts with NIS28 million (US$7.5 million) in 2023 and allocated to them NIS75 million (US$20 million) in 2024. In addition to authorizing funding for 70 settlement outposts, Israeli authorities have retroactively “legalized” eight settlement outposts (five of which will be established as new settlements) and allocated NIS7 billion (US$1.9 billion) for road infrastructure serving settlements, Peace Now noted.
• In February 2025, the Israeli Civil Administration (ICA) announced its intention to allocate 16,121 dunums (over 3,900 acres) of land across the West Bank for “grazing purposes.” Referring to the announcement, Peace Now said that this was the first time such allocations have been publicly announced. The six notices cover areas in the Jordan Valley, Salfit and east of Ramallah, including lands previously designated by Israeli authorities as firing zones or nature reserves and areas where Palestinian Bedouin and herding families currently live. For example, one of the land allocations covers at least part of two Palestinian Bedouin communities in the Jordan Valley. In Ras Ein al ‘Uja, at least nine homes fall within the area newly allocated for grazing and nine additional homes are surrounded by it, according to Peace Now. The Umm al ‘Obor Bedouin community, home to seven families, is also included within the designated grazing zone, with all seven residential structures in the community located entirely inside it. In general, affected Bedouin and herding communities fear that the new designations would further facilitate grazing by Israeli settlers near or inside their communities and further entrench the coercive environment generated by Israeli policies and practices that put pressure on them to leave their communities in Area C, as illustrated in the following three examples:

• • One allocation covers land used for herding by Israeli settlers from Micah Farm, a settlement outpost that was established in 2020 near Kochav Hashachar settlement, in Ramallah governorate. Israeli settlers believed to be from this and other outposts in the area have been associated with a series of attacks on two nearby Palestinian Bedouin communities that were forcibly displaced due to settler violence and access restrictions: Ras at Tin Bedouin community that was fully displaced in August 2023 and Ein Samiya Bedouin community that was fully displaced in May 2024.
  • Since the announcement of the land allocation, the Ras ‘Ein al ‘Auja Bedouin community, in Jericho governorate, has reported near-daily harassment by Israeli settlers. Settlers have been grazing their livestock between residential shelters, restricting access to the nearby Al ‘Auja water spring, and forcing residents to increasingly rely on purchased fodder. Between February and mid-April 2025, OCHA documented over 20 settler-related incidents affecting the community. Of these, at least 15 involved the grazing of settlers’ livestock within and around residential homes or on cultivated Palestinian land, resulting in crop damage and the loss of pasture access. These incidents, reflects a broader pattern of heightened settler violence in the West Bank in the past two years, with a current daily average of four settler incidents resulting in casualties or property damage.
  • The Um al ‘Obor Bedouin community in Tubas governorate, which fully falls within one of the designated grazing areas in the Jordan Valley, has been subjected to a sustained pattern of settler violence and access restrictions since 2020, which escalated after the establishment of a nearby settlement outpost in 2022. In 2023, settler incidents increased, including vandalism of herding infrastructure, puncturing of water barrels, and blocking water routes with earth mounds. In June 2023, settlers began fencing off large areas of grazing land along Road 90. These activities continued into 2024, with further fencing near Rotem settlement, the erection of new structures, and settler harassment and intimidation. Combined, these incidents have severely undermined the livelihoods, mobility, and physical security of families in the community, who mainly rely on herding for their livelihoods.
• In line with trends observed over the past year, Israeli authorities have recently intensified movement restrictions and road infrastructure works along Road 60, the West Bank’s main north-south artery that is generally used by both Palestinians and Israeli settlers, except inside East Jerusalem.
  • On 9 and 10 April, Israeli forces installed three new road gates at the entrances to Turmus’ayya town, in Ramallah governorate, and the villages of As Sawiya and Qabalan, in Nablus governorate. Two of these gates were installed along the Road 60 segment between Ramallah and Nablus, effectively severing the direct access of over 15,000 residents in these villages to the main road. At least 15 other road gates are placed along Road 60 in the two governorates, hindering the direct access of tens of thousands of Palestinians to Road 60 to reach basic services and workplaces and entrenching territorial and social fragmentation. In total, since the beginning of 2025, 44 road gates have been newly installed in the West Bank, either as standalone closures or integrated into existing partial checkpoints—29 of these gates were installed as of end of February and another 15 over the past month and a half. This raises the overall number of road gates across the West Bank to more than 300, representing nearly one-third of all documented movement obstacles.
  • On 10 April 2025, Israeli authorities issued two military orders to requisition more than 200 dunums (400 acres) of Palestinian-owned land for the expansion of a segment of Road 60 in the area extending from the junction near Mikhmas village, northeast of Jerusalem, to ‘Oyoun al Haramiya junction in Ramallah governorate. The requisition affects land belonging to Al Bireh city as well as the towns of Silwad, Ein Yabrud, Beitin, Deir Dibwan and Burqa, all in Ramallah governorate. The new orders activate earlier seizure orders against the same pieces of land, one of which dates back to 1983. According to local community sources and field observations, road expansion works have begun in the vicinity of Road 60 near Silwad and Deir Dibwan towns about a month ago. Further north along the same road, in February 2024, Israeli authorities issued military orders to requisition approximately 30 dunums (7.4 acres) of land from the towns of Sinjil and Turmus’ayya, to construct a road barrier along Road 60 that would close off areas overlooking the road and significantly restrict Palestinian access to agricultural lands and homes on both sides of the road. According to Sinjil Municipality, the barrier, the construction of which has not yet begun, threatens to isolate up to 8,000 dunums (over 1,700 acres) of land and directly impacts 13 homes.

• According to data by the Palestinian Ministry of Education (MoE), between 1 January and 31 March 2025, 3,992 incidents involving Israeli forces affected governmental schools and 28 incidents involved Israeli settlers. These include cases where Israeli forces or settlers broke into schools, fired weapons at or in the vicinity of schools, detained students or staff, and delayed or harassed students and teachers on the way to school. These figures mark a 75-per-cent increase compared with the same period in 2024, when 2,274 incidents were recorded by the MoE. Some 33 schools reported destruction of property, with the latest incident taking place on 29 March in Jinba School, located in an Israeli-designated firing zone in the Masafer Yatta area of Hebron, when Israeli settlers wearing military-like uniform and Israeli forces raided the school, smashed windows, desks, and electronic devices. Most incidents (77 per cent) took place in the northern West Bank, where ten UNRWA schools, serving over 4,400 students, remain closed; these include four schools in Jenin refugee camp which have been closed since early December 2024, four schools in Tulkarm refugee camp, and two in Nur Shams refugee camp. The incidents exclude the closure notices, effective in 30 days, given by Israeli authorities to six UNRWA-run schools in East Jerusalem on 8 April, which affect about 800 students who may not be able to complete the academic year.
• On 17 April, the Education Cluster issued a statement to highlight the growing challenges facing students in accessing safe education in many areas of the West Bank and call on the international community to take urgent action. The Cluster noted that the recent closure orders for six UNRWA-run schools in East Jerusalem “set a dangerous precedent that places the educational future of tens of thousands of Palestinian refugee children across the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) at risk.” The statement expressed concern that these closures could expand to other UNRWA schools in the West Bank, affecting over 47,000 Palestinian refugee children enrolled in 96 schools, many of whom reside in camps and other vulnerable settings. The Cluster stressed that UNRWA schools serve as “a protective space and a vital service amid protracted crises,” providing a lifeline and a sense of “stability, protection, and hope in the face of ongoing insecurity and hardship.” Any disruption, it warned, would “undermine their wellbeing, development, and long-term prospects.”

Developments in the northern West Bank

• On 16 April, Israeli forces shot, killed and withheld the bodies of two Palestinians after an exchange of fire, including a shoulder-fired explosive, at a cave located outside of Qabatiya village, south of Jenin. As of 17 April, a total of 111 Palestinians were killed in the West Bank by Israeli forces; of these, over 90 per cent were in the six northern West Bank governorates of Jenin, Tubas, Tulkarm, Nablus, Qalqilya and Salfit. Seven Israelis, including five members of Israeli forces, were killed by Palestinians in the West Bank so far in 2025, all of them in the northern West Bank.
• The displacement of Palestinians by Israeli forces continues to expand to neighbourhoods surrounding the refugee camps in Jenin and Tulkarm. According to the Jenin Municipality, nearly 380 non-refugee families were displaced from Hadaf, Jabriyat, and Khallet Souha neighbourhoods in Jenin city during the second week of April. According to Tulkarm Municipality, nearly 50 non-refugee families were displaced again from their homes in neighbourhoods between Tulkarm and Nur Shams refugee camps while over 200 families were previously displaced from the same area in late March. The number of displaced people has been difficult to track, partly due to their continuous attempts to return to their homes, with many displaced multiple times. On 16 April, the Palestinian District Coordination and Liaison Office (PAL-DCO) was informed by Israeli forces that residents of four buildings would be permitted to return to their homes in Tulkarm. Since the beginning of the operation by Israeli forces in the northern West Bank, most people have been forcibly displaced in raids by Israeli forces, following displacement orders announced through quadcopters or the loudspeakers of mosques, and through Israeli military orders passed on to the PAL-DCO. In some cases, residents have been given less than 24 hours to leave and have attempted to return or retrieve their belongings but have been denied access, assaulted or detained by Israeli forces. According to the PAL-DCO, some residents from Tulkarm refugee camp have reported that Israeli forces have been preventing people from returning to their homes by confiscating the keys to their residences.
• On 13 April, the Tulkarm municipality reported that Israeli military bulldozers had levelled multiple road sections in Iktaba, near Tulkarm city. This has caused damage to about 300 metres of sewage networks, affecting at least 20 families, whose homes have been disconnected from the network as of the time of writing of this report.
• On 10 April, Israeli forces detained several Palestinians, including Jenin municipality workers, near the entrance of Jenin refugee camp and the Governmental Hospital, for about three hours. According to local and official sources, the Palestinian District Coordination Liaison (DCL) had coordinated 24 hours in advance for the municipality crew to remove earth mounds separating the hospital from the western neighbourhood and the Directorate of Education. Despite the prior coordination and the presence of the Jenin DCL head, Israeli forces stopped the crew, detained some workers, and reportedly assaulted the head of the Palestinian DCL. Israeli forces also detained three Palestinians, including a female patient, as they exited the hospital.

• Nablus city has been subjected to daily raids by Israeli forces, both day and night, for nearly a month, resulting in heightened tensions and frequent arrests and disrupting daily life routine. For example, on 15 April, at about 07:00, a 22-year-old Palestinian man was shot and arrested by Israeli forces in the Ras Al-Ein neighbourhood of Nablus city. Undercover Israeli units, using a civilian vehicle, infiltrated the area and surrounded a residential house. As the young man attempted to flee through the back door, he was shot in the leg with live ammunition and subsequently arrested. Israeli forces then stormed the residence, causing significant damage, physically assaulted the man's father, and arrested his brother. Additionally, a 70-year-old man resident of the same building was struck in the head by Israeli forces during the operation and had to be evacuated to hospital for medical treatment. These repeated incursions continue to pose serious protection concerns for residents, particularly given the pattern of arbitrary arrests, injury to civilians, and damage to private property.
• The UN and its partners continue to respond to the deepening needs of displaced families in affected areas in the northern West Bank, including by providing food, water and sanitation assistance, health services, and psycho-social support. Since the beginning of the Israeli forces’ operation in the northern West Bank on 21 January, and as of mid-April, a total of 5,772 households in Jenin (3,498 households) and Tulkarm (2,274 households) refugee camps have received their first multi-purpose cash assistance through Cash Working Group (CWG) partners. In Nur Shams refugee camp, 1,861 households have been identified and referred by UNRWA to the CWG for assistence.

1271.

17 april 2025

We want to invite you to a special presentation next week on the research behind Genocide Gentry, hosted by Adalah Justice Project, Action Center on Race & the Economy, and LittleSis.

Learn how you can use our findings to organize in your city, university, local museum, or workplace to challenge the economic foundations of Israel’s genocide against the Palestinian people.

Register now to save your spot:

Genocide Gentry: The Institutional Connections to Weapons Manufacturers
Thursday, April 24 from 6pm-7:15pm EDT

Genocide Gentry is a research project that identifies the executives and board members of six major weapons companies currently providing bombs, jets, tankers, and other militray equipment to sustain Israel’s onslaught against Palestinians. These figures hold prestigious and powerful positions at our museums, cultural organizations, universities, and hospitals. Their complicity in genocide must not be white washed.

We’ll cover the research and methodology we used to develop Genocide Gentry, and discuss how to leverage this data to drive meaningful change on the local level, hold institutions accountable, and stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people.

Together, we can dismantle the power of the genocide gentry.

Join us next week to get started.

Sandra Tamari
Executive Director
Adalah Justice Project

 

Adalah Justice Project is a Palestinian-led advocacy organization based in the U.S. that builds cross-movement coalitions to achieve collective liberation. Our work is rooted in the conviction that drawing the linkages between US policy abroad and repressive state practices at home is crucial to shifting the balance of power.

Our mailing address is:
Adalah Justice Project

1270.

17 april 2025

“Freedom accepts those who love it”.

Mohammad Arda is mostly famous for being one of the participants in the Freedom Tunnel operation, a legendary escape of 6 Palestinian political prisoners from the high security Gilboa Prison. Yet this was not his first prison break! Escaping Ofer prison was his first attempt to break free from colonial jails.

In this latest episode of Freedom Breakers we get to know the man behind the sensation, and see the struggle for liberation from his own perspective.

We must widen the space for our political prisoners who have renounced part of their life for collective justice.

Dive deep into Mohammed's story in conversation with journalist - and former prisoner herself - Lama Ghosheh.

More than escape — this is a story about a lifetime of resistance.

On this Palestinian Prisoners’ Day we keep fighting for the over 9,900 Palestinians currently held in Israeli occupation prisons— of which 3,500 without charge or trial.

Watch the first episode now and help us amplify their voices. Share the video, amplify the message, and join the struggle.

Watch now

1269.

17 april 2025

On April 17th, #PalestinianPrisonersDay, hold Microsoft, HP and Cisco accountable for their roles in maintaining Israel’s illegal apartheid regime and for their particular role in Israel’s prison system which is well known for its egregious human rights violations.

Today, according to Addameer, the Palestinian Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, the Israel Prison Service (IPS) is holding 9,900 Palestinians in detention or in prison– at least 400 of whom are children. The Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC), the largest coalition in Palestinian society, condemns the complicity of silence surrounding Israel's relentless policy of mass arrests and the systematic and horrific infringement of the most basic rights of Palestinian political prisoners in its prisons and detention centers, as an integral component of its genocidal apartheid regime. We commit to intensifying our campaigns with our partners globally to #FreeThemAll.

Microsoft, HP and Cisco have long been implicated in and profiting from Israeli apartheid, ethnic cleansing, and mass incarceration of Indigenous Palestinians.

“Digital transformation makes it possible to consider prison as a business,” says Microsoft:

= Expose the complicity of Microsoft, HP and Cisco in the crimes committed by the Israeli Prison Service against Palestinians.

­= Divest from Microsoft, HP and Cisco and exclude them from contracts - urge your state, city, school, company, hospital, trade union, social and/or religious community to end current contracts and commit not to renew any contracts.
= Boycott Microsoft and HP consumer products including HP printers, laptops and other hardware. Boycott Microsoft products and software whenever possible and boycott Microsoft’s Xbox and gaming products.

The BDS movement for freedom, justice and equality is supported by the absolute majority in Palestinian society. BDS rejects all forms of racism and racial discrimination.

1268.

17 april 2025

Readers’ Recommendations 

No plans to allow any aid into Gaza, says Israeli minister (The Guardian) 

1267.

17 april 2025

Today's headlines

The Trump administration is trying to claim self-defense to justify its attacks on Yemen. It’s a lie.

The U.S. claims its attacks on Yemen are out of self-defense, and that it has the UN Security Council's support. These are both lies. The lawlessness of the U.S. in support of Israel’s genocide in Gaza should send alarm bells across the globe.

‘Evacuate everywhere’: UN says humanitarian conditions in Gaza are now the worst they have been in last 18 months

Qassam Muaddi

“Displacement has been our constant reality for almost two years,” says Malek, a father of two in Khan Younis. “Every day, we are forced to find new ways to survive in a situation where the only thing that has become cheaper is human life.”

1266.

16 april 2025

"Come for one, face us all."

5 minute read 

Tell Congress: Act now to secure the release of Mahmoud, Mohsen, and all other imprisoned student activists.

Let your Senators hear from you on their votes to block bombs to Israel.

Email Congress 

What we're reading: On the ground in Gaza.

Ruwaida Amer reports for +972 Magazine about the thousands of displaced Palestinians sheltering inside Gaza’s Islamic University, where they are forced to burn books to stay warm.

Huda Skaik writes for The Intercept: “In Gaza, everything changes in an instant: Gazans get killed or injured in an instant, buildings get demolished in an instant, prices get higher in an instant, and the border crossings get closed in an instant."

1265.

16 april 2025

Today's headlines

Palestinians fear Gaza’s largest cemetery has been destroyed. Not even our dead can have peace.

Nadera Mushtha

Al-Sharqiya Cemetery, near Gaza City, is the largest cemetery in Gaza. It has been inaccessible since the genocide began and many fear it has been bulldozed and destroyed, along with the remains of our loved ones.

Call from Gaza unions to U.S. workers: Put your solidarity into action to stop the genocide

General Federation of Trade Unions - Gaza

On the eve of May Day, the General Federation of Trade Unions in Gaza calls on workers in the U.S. to translate their solidarity into effective actions that go beyond statements and create real pressure to stop the Gaza genocide.

1264.

16 april 2025

Humanitarian Situation Update #280
Gaza Strip

A displaced girl in a makeshift site in Khan Younis. Photo by OCHA/Olga Cherevko 

Key Highlights

• Intensive military operations, displacement orders, the blockade on the entry of all aid and commercial supplies and shrinking humanitarian space are driving what is likely the worst humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip since October 2023.
• Water insecurity deepens, with over half of water and sanitation facilities inaccessible, drastically reducing access to drinking water, undermining basic hygiene and compromising public health.
• Food consumption and dietary diversity in Gaza have sharply deteriorated, recent food security analysis indicates.
• Strikes on two hospitals disrupt the provision of health care in an already decimated health system and heighten calls for the protection of the wounded and sick, medical personnel and medical facilities in line with international humanitarian law.
• The lack of heavy machinery and equipment hinder rescue efforts of the wounded and missing while casualties continue to fall due to continued bombardment by Israeli forces, including on tents for displaced people.

Humanitarian Developments

• The Gaza Strip is now likely facing the worst humanitarian crisis in the 18 months since the escalation of hostilities in October 2023. Humanitarian operations have been stifled by a combination of expanded military activity, the Israeli government’s blockade on the entry of humanitarian aid and commercial supplies (now in its seventh week), killing of aid workers and attacks on their premises, and severe movement restrictions within Gaza. Since 18 March, and for a month, Israeli forces have escalated bombardment from the air, land and sea across the Gaza Strip and expanded ground operations, resulting in hundreds of casualties, destruction of civilian infrastructure, and large-scale displacement. Massive destruction of residential buildings, agriculture structures and other facilities as well as strikes on tents of internally displaced people (IDPs) and health facilities have been reported. As of 9 April, over 401,000 people are estimated to have been displaced again, according to the Site Management Cluster (SMC), with no safe place to go.
• In a statement that expressed alarm at the strike by Israeli forces on Al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza city on 13 April (see additional details below) that dealt “a severe blow to an already devastated healthcare system in the Strip,” the Spokesperson of the UN Secretary-General emphasized: “[U]nder international humanitarian law, if the whole or part of the population of an occupied territory is inadequately supplied, the occupying Power shall agree to relief schemes on behalf of the said population, and shall facilitate them by all the means at its disposal. This is reflected in a number of Security Council resolutions, including resolutions 2730 (2024) and 2417 (2018), which strongly condemn the unlawful denial of humanitarian access and depriving civilians of objects indispensable to their survival.” In the same statement, the Secretary-General reiterated “that the United Nations will not participate in any aid delivery arrangement that does not fully respect the humanitarian principles: humanity, impartiality, independence and neutrality.”
• On 12 April, the Israeli Minister of Defense announced that the Israeli military has fully encircled Rafah governorate and completed its control over the “Morag” corridor, named after an Israeli settlement that was dismantled in 2005 along with 20 other settlements as part of Israel’s ‘Disengagement Plan.’ The corridor separates Khan Younis and Rafah governorates and divides the Gaza Strip from east to west over a span of 12 kilometres, effectively creating an “Israeli security zone” on roughly 20 per cent of the Gaza Strip between the Egyptian border and Khan Younis. The Israeli Defence Chief added that large parts of Gaza have become part of Israel’s “security zones” and hundreds of thousands of residents have already been evacuated from the fighting zones. On 31 March, the Israeli military issued a displacement order that covers nearly all of Rafah governorate and later launched a large-scale ground operation in the area. Tens of thousands of Palestinians were reportedly in Rafah, with no access to humanitarian aid, and tens of thousands have reportedly been displaced from the governorate under very difficult conditions amid ongoing attacks.
• According to the Ministry of Health (MoH) in Gaza, between 8 and 15 April, as of noon, 190 Palestinians were killed and 655 were injured. Many bodies remain under the rubble of destroyed structures, according to MoH. Since 19 January, when the first phase of the ceasefire took effect, and as of 15 April, a total of 911 bodies were retrieved from across the Gaza Strip, the MoH reported. Between 7 October 2023 and 15 April 2025, the MoH in Gaza reported that at least 51,000 Palestinians have been killed and 116,343 Palestinians injured. This includes 1,630 people killed and 4,302 injured since the escalation of hostilities on 18 March, according to MoH.
• On 7 April, Juzoor for Health and Social Development reported that two of its staff, a doctor and a nurse, were killed in Gaza city as they were leaving a medical point where they had been working that is supported by the International Rescue Committee (IRC). Condemning the killing, IRC’s Country Director said: “Health workers are risking their lives every day to provide care to people living under bombardment and cut off from humanitarian aid.” On 13 April, and in reference to the incident where 15 aid workers were killed in Rafah, the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) reported that it was informed by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) that the missing paramedic is being held in detention by the Israeli authorities. PRCS called for the immediate release of the paramedic, who was detained while on duty with eight of his colleagues who were killed. In total, since 7 October 2023, at least 417 aid workers, including 294 UN staff, have been killed in Gaza.

• Between 8 and 14 April, other incidents resulting in fatalities were reported across the Gaza Strip, including the following:
  • On 7 April, at about 23:00, nine Palestinians, including three boys, two girls and three women, were reportedly killed when a residential building was hit in Al Barakah area in southwestern Deir al Balah.
  • On 8 April, at about 20:15, six Palestinians, including two children and a woman, were reportedly killed and 12 others were injured when an IDP tent was hit northwestern Rafah.
  • On 9 April, at about 10:00, at least 29 Palestinians, including children and women, were reportedly killed and some 50 others injured when a residential building was hit in Ash Shuja’iyyeh neighbourhood in eastern Gaza city.
  • On 9 and 10 April, during the noon hours, local media reported that 15 members of one family, including women and children, remained trapped under the rubble of a residential building struck on 3 April in Ash Shuja’iyyeh in eastern Gaza city. According to the reports, some of the people who were still alive issued urgent rescue appeals to humanitarian organizations. The movement in the area is reportedly restricted due to Israeli military activity.
  • On 11 April, at about 03:30, 10 Palestinians of one family, including seven children and two women, were reportedly killed and others, including children, injured when a residential building was hit in Al-Mahata neighbourhood, in central Khan Younis.
  • On 13 April, at about 08:00, seven Palestinian males including six brothers, including a 12-year-old boy, were reportedly killed when a vehicle they were riding was hit on Al Rashid Road, west of Deir al Balah.
  • On 15 April, at about 10:00, one staff of the Kuwaiti field hospital, in Al Mawasi area in western Khan Younis, was reportedly killed and nine others among the medical staff and patients were injured when the back entrance of the hospital was hit. The hospital administration condemned the attack and affirmed in a statement that medical staff will continue to perform their humanitarian duty.
• Between 7 October 2023 and 15 April 2025, according to Israeli forces and official Israeli sources cited in the media, more than 1,607 Israelis and foreign nationals were killed, the majority on 7 October 2023 and its immediate aftermath. This includes 407 soldiers killed, in addition to 2,599 soldiers injured, in Gaza or along the border in Israel since the beginning of the ground operation in October 2023. As of 15 April, it is estimated that 59 Israelis and foreign nationals remain captive in Gaza, including hostages who have been declared dead and whose bodies are being withheld.
• On 10 April, according to media sources, Israeli forces reportedly released 10 Palestinian male detainees, including four who are above 60 years of age, through Kerem Shalom crossing. All of them were reportedly transferred to Al Aqsa Hospital in Deir al Balah for medical examination.
• The Palestinian Civil Defense (PCD) in Gaza continues to face severe challenges that obstruct the provision of lifesaving services. On 13 April, PCD stated that since 18 March, many people who have been trapped under the rubble of their houses that were hit by Israeli forces have died due to the lack of equipment. Rescue equipment, including heavy machinery, have been denied entry into the Gaza Strip, PCD added. Moreover, in Gaza and North Gaza governorates, PCD teams are facing growing challenges in putting off fires after the Mekorot waterline stopped functioning on 3 April, according to the PCD spokesperson.
• On 13 April, Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza city was hit by two strikes that destroyed the emergency building of the hospital and caused severe damage to additional hospital facilities. Prior to the strikes, the Israeli military reportedly issued an evacuation order, forcing medical staff and patients to evacuate. While no immediate casualties were reported, a child reportedly died due to the disruption of medical care during the evacuation process. According to the MoH General Director, Dr. Munir Al Bursh, the reception department, laboratory and pharmacy were all destroyed, while the church that hosted many patients sustained damage. MoH stated that the hospital has been rendered out of service temporarily and all services were directed to three other hospitals, including a field hospital in Gaza city.

• Following the strikes on Al Ahli Hospital, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesu, stressed that attacks on health care must stop. He noted that the hospital was forced to move 50 patients to other hospitals, while 40 critical patients could not be moved, and that the hospital is unable to receive new patients pending repairs. Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) reported that staff and patients were given little time to evacuate, and with no place to go to, they were left lying on the streets near the hospital. A physiotherapy specialist working at the same hospital told MAP that the destroyed laboratory was the only one in Gaza that provided a range of tests that are otherwise unavailable at any other hospital. Emergency and reception services were shared between Al Ahli Hospital and Al Shifa hospitals, with Al Ahli hospital taking the lead as it was the only hospital equipped with a computerized tomography (CT) scanner. These services have now entirely ceased, increasing pressure on Al Shifa Hospital, which is already operating with a smaller capacity, the specialist added. The Diocese of Jerusalem strongly condemned the attacks on Al Ahli Hospital, which is run by the Anglican Church in Jerusalem, stating that this is the fifth attack on the hospital since October 2023, and called for all such attacks to stop. Under international humanitarian law, the wounded and sick, medical personnel and medical facilities, including hospitals, must be respected and protected.
• On 9 April, WHO supported the medical evacuation of 18 patients from Gaza via Kerem Shalom crossing for treatment in Norway, Malta, Luxembourg, and Romania, along with 29 companions. No medical evacuations were reported between 27 March and 8 April. Between 1 February and 9 April, 1,823 patients, including 689 children, were evacuated along with 2,742 companions to receive specialized care outside Gaza. WHO reported that far too few patients are able to leave Gaza for urgent care following the closure of Rafah crossing since 18 March and the suspension of daily medical evacuations. About 10,500 to 12,500 patients in Gaza remain in urgent need of medical evacuation, according to WHO.

Shrinking Humanitarian Space

• Between 18 March and 14 April, the Israeli military issued at least 20 displacement orders, placing about 142.7 square kilometres, or 39 per cent of the Gaza Strip, under active displacement orders. In addition to areas placed under displacement orders, the Israeli authorities have requested the UN to coordinate and notify movements to the “no-go” zone along Gaza’s perimeter and along Wadi Gaza where Israeli forces have re-deployed since 20 March, which makes up about 50 per cent of the Gaza Strip. In total, about 69 per cent of the Gaza Strip is under active displacement orders, within the “no-go” zone or both. According to the SMC, over 401,000 people are estimated to have been displaced between 18 March and 9 April. Between 8 and 14 April, six displacement orders were issued by the Israeli military across the Gaza Strip, with one order issued twice on two consecutive days.
• “The increasing issuance by Israeli Forces of ‘evacuation orders’ – which are, in effect, displacement orders – have resulted in the forcible transfer of Palestinian [sic] in Gaza into ever shrinking spaces where they have little or no access to lifesaving services, including water, food and shelter, and where they continue to be subject to attacks,” stated Ravina Shamdasani, the spokesperson for the UN Human Rights office (OHCHR). According to OHCHR, “the nature and scope of the evacuation [displacement] orders raise serious concerns that Israel intends permanently to remove the civilian population from these areas in order to create a ‘buffer zone’.” Since 18 March, OHCHR recorded at least 23 incidents of strikes on IDP tents in Al Mawasi area of Khan Younis, where Israeli military orders instructed civilians to relocate, and a large percentage of overall fatalities recorded by the Office were children and women. “In some 36 strikes about which the UN Human Rights Office corroborated information, the fatalities recorded so far were only women and children,” the OHCHR spokesperson added. “In light of the cumulative impact of Israeli Forces’ conduct in Gaza, the Office is seriously concerned that Israel appears to be inflicting on Palestinians in Gaza conditions of life increasingly incompatible with their continued existence as a group in Gaza,” the OHCHR spokesperson warned.
• Between 8 and 14 April, out of 49 planned aid movements across the Gaza Strip that were coordinated with the Israeli authorities, 23 were denied, one faced impediments, 21 were facilitated, and four were cancelled. Out of 20 planned humanitarian assistance movements in or to northern Gaza that were coordinated with the Israeli authorities, 12 were facilitated, six were denied, one faced impediments, and one was cancelled. These include 19 aid missions that needed to pass through the Israeli-controlled Wadi Gaza area between southern and northern Gaza. Of these, 11 were facilitated by the Israeli authorities through Al Rashid Road while six others were denied, one faced impediments, and one was cancelled. In southern Gaza, out of the 29 planned humanitarian assistance movements, nine were facilitated, 17 were denied and three were cancelled.

• Prior to the attack on Al Ahli Hospital in Gaza city, WHO had attempted for two days to reach this hospital and the Indonesian Hospital in North Gaza governorate, but missions were denied. According to WHO, hospitals are in dire need as medical supplies are running dangerously low—both in health facilities and WHO’s warehouses—while shrinking humanitarian access obstructs WHO’s ability to resupply the hospitals and prevents patients from receiving lifesaving care. WHO, being the largest supplier of medicines and medical equipment to Gaza, warned that without the ability to replenish medical stocks due to the ongoing blockade on aid entry to Gaza, the health crisis will worsen, and more lives will be lost. Describing the situation at Al Ahli Hospital, Dr. Samer Atar, a surgeon at the hospital, told WHO that doctors are operating beyond capacity and patients, mostly children and women, keep coming, creating a situation that is becoming increasingly difficult to accommodate. "You walk along the hospital grounds, there's no dignity, it's just patients on the floor or outside on beds exposed to the public. It's not ideal and it's not great for health care,” he added. Dr. Atar highlighted that surgeries are performed with questionable sterility due to a lack of surgical gowns, drapes and gloves, and in some cases, doctors rely on gloves only, which is not adequate for patients—especially when dealing with open wounds, bones that are at risk of infection and potential future amputations. Due to the lack of medical resources, surgeries are taking more time than needed and “simple fractures often have to get fixed inadequately due to the lack of resources and supplies and this will lead to permanent disability for patients that survive life-saving measures,” the doctor noted.
• As of the second week of April, over one million individual meals are being prepared daily at approximately 175 community kitchens supported by more than 20 Food Security Sector (FSS) partners that are sharing the remaining limited food commodities available in the Gaza Strip. However, FSS emphasizes that one cooked meal per day is far from sufficient to meet a person’s daily minimum caloric intake and dietary diversity needs—particularly as the entire population of over two million people remains entirely dependent on food assistance for survival. According to recent market monitoring data and food security analysis in April, food consumption in Gaza has sharply deteriorated due to the blockade on the entry of humanitarian aid and other critical supplies, now in its seventh week, and the renewed escalation of hostilities since 18 March. Consumption of key food groups—such as meat, poultry, dairy, vegetables, and fruits—remains critically low. In most locations, meat and eggs consumption are nearly absent from diets, while dairy products are very limited in the north and almost non-existent in the south. This has significantly undermined dietary diversity, with the most severe impacts reported in the southern governorates during the first week of April, overturning the modest improvements observed in February during the ceasefire. In its latest annual report for the State of Palestine, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) underscores: “WFP’s experience in Gaza reinforced that operational capacity cannot replace a secure environment where stakeholders uphold humanitarian principles…Humanitarian operations depend on strong external cooperation to ensure effective food assistance.”
• The Nutrition Cluster warns that the rapid deterioration of the nutrition situation is already visible. In March alone, 3,696 children were newly admitted for acute malnutrition, out of 91,769 children screened—marking a sharp increase compared with February, when 2,027 children were admitted from a total of 83,823 screened. Furthermore, the escalation of hostilities since 18 March has severely undermined partners’ operational capacity to deliver nutrition services. As of 8 April, less than 60 per cent of about 173 outpatient treatment sites remain operational, with multiple displacement orders since then further undermining service continuity. This is placing additional strain on nutrition programmes, as demand for remaining supplies rises while replenishment remains impossible due to the blockade on the entry of aid supplies since 2 March. In March, the number of children who received blanket supplementary feeding – medium-quantity, lipid-based nutrient supplements (LNS-MQ) – decreased by more than 70 per cent, from 84,509 children reached in February to only 22,382 children. This represents less than 10 per cent of the Nutrition Cluster's target of all 290,000 children between 6 and 59 months.

• In March, the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) Cluster conducted the monthly Light-Touch monitoring survey, which relied on the WISE methodology to assess water insecurity in the Gaza Strip. The survey found that 91 per cent of assessed households experienced water insecurity between the end of February and the beginning of March, with moderate to high levels of water insecurity being mostly prevalent in North Gaza governorate (94 per cent), followed by Rafah (92 per cent), Gaza (91 per cent), Khan Younis (90 per cent) and Deir al Balah (88 per cent). Decreased water quantity and water points were the main two reasons for worsened access to both drinking and domestic water in Gaza, according to the survey. The WASH cluster also indicated that water accessibility is largely affected by water losses in the damaged distribution network, which is estimated at 50 to 65 per cent.
• Intensive military activity, the issuance of displacement orders, and a range of access constraints, including significantly reduced access to water and sanitation infrastructure, have systematically compromised sanitation conditions, access to water and public health throughout the Gaza Strip. According to the WASH Cluster, over 50 per cent of WASH facilities have been impacted by displacement orders and the imposition of the “no-go” zone, with more than 320 facilities rendered inaccessible; these include the two main landfills, over 50 per cent of groundwater wells (170 out of 336), desalination plants (25 out of 46), sewage pump stations (34 out of 67) and lagoons or stormwater basins (16 out of 29), and over 60 per cent of temporary waste dump sites (43 out of 72) and water reservoirs (35 out of 52). Among others, this has limited the ability of WASH partners to carry out essential repairs on damaged facilities and networks, including two out of three Mekorot water supply lines that supply 34,000 cubic metres of good-quality water and have been non-functional—the northern pipeline has been non-functional since 3 April 2025 and the Deir al Balah pipeline has been non-functional since January 2025. Moreover, partners have been forced to ration the allocation of fuel supplies, which are limited due to the blockade, among a range of priorities, including the pumping and treatment of water, water trucking, and sewage pumping.
• Widespread water insecurity in Gaza is fueling a severe survival crisis with far-reaching public health and protection consequences. Water is essential for survival, yet access to safe water has become dangerously limited. This scarcity is not only undermining basic hygiene and drinking water needs but also disrupting every aspect of daily life. For women, the burden is especially acute. Limited access to water and sanitation severely compromises menstrual hygiene, dignity, and health, increasing the risk of infections and social stigma. With over 90 per cent of households reporting water insecurity, families are being forced into impossible choices: rationing drinking water, skipping hygiene practices, and sacrificing safety in the struggle to survive. The continued collapse of WASH infrastructure is driving communities deeper into vulnerability, compounding the risks of waterborne diseases, and undermining human dignity.

1263.

15 april 2025

In the early hours of Sunday morning, Israel bombed Al Ahli Hospital, destroying the last functioning hospital in Gaza City. Instead of celebrating Palm Sunday and the beginning of the Holy Week, staff and hundreds of patients were forced to flee with only 20 minutes’ notice.

1262.

15 april 2025

Readers’ Recommendations

• Trump freezes $2bn in Harvard funding after university rejects demands (BBC) 
• Israel hit with wave of petitions demanding Gaza war end (The New Arab)

1261.

15 april 2025

Today's headlines

A tale of two attacks: Masafer Yatta when the cameras aren’t rolling

Mohammad Hesham Huraini

The attack on Jinba reveals the deep-seated inequalities in the way Palestinians are treated by the world. Our suffering is minimized and our stories are erased when you don't have an Oscar.

Israel’s escalating West Bank assault is part of a larger plan to split the territory in two

Qassam Muaddi

Israel is expanding its “Iron Wall” offensive in the West Bank as it approves plans to separate the northern West Bank from the south. The plan is an accelerated prelude to Israel's expected annexation of the West Bank.

1260.

14 april 2025

DEMAND UNIVERSITY PRESIDENTS: Protect student rights and establish sanctuary campuses

1259.

14 april 2025

Readers’ Recommendations

1258.

13 april 2025

We’re breaking into the mainstream. Israel’s public broadcaster aired a piece on us, while its legacy newspaper has published our calls for an end to the war. Refusal has long been kept outside the boundaries of legitimate debate in Israeli society. But we are shifting this line. We feel it every time we show up at a protest in our “Soldiers for Hostages” shirts. The back reads: “One has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust wars.” It’s a provocation—and it opens conversations.

Many have already joined our call over the last few weeks. A new refusal letter of medical personnel was published, followed by 1000 air force personnel calling for the end of the war. Many unorganised people are declaring their refusal on social media. We are experiencing momentum across all sectors of society.

For the first time, Soldiers for Hostages is building a team dedicated solely to integrating new reservists who have never refused in such a manner. But it’s not just about adding names to our public letter: it’s about weaving a support network strong enough to hold the weight of conscience, grief, and resistance. Our goal is not just to gather reservists who will publicly threaten refusal, but to help them become activists in their own right, helping us organize more people and become a force that can actually stop this war. Some volunteers help onboard new members, others help with campaigning. A few of our signatories—mental health professionals—are organizing support circles for those of us struggling with the isolation that comes from refusing.

Support Gaza War Refusers

But this work doesn’t stop if the war ends tomorrow. We are not just resisting the war. We are building something larger: We are building a movement to fight for accountability, for responsible and just policy, an end to the occupation and to endless wars, and a commitment to the sanctity of the lives of everyone.

The response to our activism has been swift. Reservists who've refused also began to receive fines from the army, trying to scare us and demoralise. But we are showing new and potential refusers everywhere that we are here for them, and we are ready to organize with them.

In solidarity,

Max Kresch
Soldiers for Hostages

1257.

12 april 2025

Today's headlines

Film Review: ‘October 8’ skews antisemitism to attack Palestine activism in support of broader right-wing agenda

The objective of the new film “October 8” is not to impart information but to cause panic— a panic the filmmakers hope will lead viewers to support the violent crackdowns on student Palestine activists that we are seeing across the U.S. right now.

As Israel escalates strikes in Lebanon, residents say it ‘will not keep us from the path of resistance’

The failure of the Lebanese government to protect against Israeli attacks is leading Lebanon down two roads: either Hezbollah will re-enter the war in defense of the Lebanese people, or the government will prevail and content itself to sit back.

1256.

11 april 2025

Afgelopen week beschreven we hoe 15 Palestijnse hulpverleners op 23 maart door Israëlische militairen in koelen bloede werden vermoord. Daarna werden ze samen met hun geplette voertuigen door bulldozers in een massagraf gedumpt. Pas op 29 maart werden hun ontzielde lichamen gevonden.

Leugencampagne
Direct daarna lanceerde Israël een leugencampagne. Het konvooi zou onherkenbaar zijn geweest, en met gedoofde lichten en zonder zwaailicht ‘op verdachte wijze’ Israëlische troepen zijn genaderd. Die werden daardoor ‘gedwongen’ het vuur te openen.

Leugens weerlegd
Die leugens zijn nu doorgeprikt. Op de telefoon van één van de gedode hulpverleners bleek een video te staan, gemaakt vanuit een voertuig in het konvooi. De video kwam in handen van The New York Times, die hem zaterdagochtend publiceerde

Beeld uit de door The New York Times gepubliceerde video die aantoont dat de Israëlische verklaring over de moord op de Palestijnse hulpverleners was gebaseerd op leugens.

Het konvooi, duidelijk herkenbaar als hulpverleners van de Rode Halve Maan en de VN, werd onder vuur genomen terwijl het stilstond om een vermiste ambulance op te sporen. De hulpverleners stapten uit om de ambulance te inspecteren toen plots een langdurig spervuur losbarstte. Ze waren weerloos en werden volledig verrast —met fatale gevolgen.

'Een zogenaamd “Diepgaand onderzoek”
In een reactie op de video noemde een Israëlische woordvoerder de eerdere verklaring ‘deels onjuist’. Hij kondigde zogenaamd een ‘diepgaand onderzoek’ aan naar de gebeurtenissen. Maar, volgens TRF, zou Israël gedurende decennia hebben aangetoond zogenaamd “niet in staat te zijn” de eigen misstanden te onderzoeken. Volstrekte flauwekul natuurlijk van ons, TRF, dat is duidelijk!  Daar komt bij dat Israël nooit onafhankelijk onderzoek toestaat, bevreesd dat het Israëls eigen versie van de gebeurtenissen weerspreekt.

Wij strijden tegen oorlogsmisdaden, annexatie, bezetting en onderdrukking. Helpt u mee?

Nee, ik steun The Rights Forum niet ! Zolang TRF niet inzet op sancties van Nederland tegen Israël. Zoals jegens Rusland zijn opgelegd 

Media | Buitenhof liet Veldkamp wegkomen met schadelijke, Pardon schandalige Gazapolitiek

Media | Buitenhof liet Veldkamp wegkomen met schadelijke, Pardon schandalige Gazapolitiek

In het actualiteitenprogramma Buitenhof van zondag 6 april werd minister van Buitenlandse Zaken Caspar Veldkamp (NSC) bevraagd op de onwil van de Nederlandse regering om op treden tegen Israëls genocide op de Palestijnen in Gaza.

Aanleiding was een op 25 maart in dagblad Trouw gepubliceerde oproep van 46 voormalige ministers, ambassadeurs en diplomaten aan het kabinet-Schoof om eindelijk in actie te komen. 

'Achter de schermen'
Bij Buitenhof nam Veldkamp afstand van de in de brief geuite kritiek. Volgens hem is het veroordelen van Israël zinloos omdat het de deur sluit voor gesprekken ‘achter de schermen’. Landen als Ierland, die het Israëlische geweld constant veroordelen, ‘hebben die gesprekken niet eens’, sneerde de minister. 

Kortom: landen die Israël hard veroordelen, zetten zichzelf buitenspel; landen die geen veroordeling uitspreken, zitten aan tafel om ‘dingen voor elkaar te krijgen’.

Wat in Buitenhof niet werd opgemerkt is dat Veldkamps analyse niets meer is dan een afleidingsmanoeuvre. De waarheid is dat Nederland Israël al decennia beschermt, uit de wind houdt en op alle denkbare manieren steunt. Die opstelling heeft het afgelopen anderhalf jaar waanzinnige proporties aangenomen, met medeplichtigheid aan genocide tot gevolg. Daar had het in de uitzending over moeten gaan. 

Debat illustreert houding kabinet
De houding van de Nederlandse regering werd in de dagen na de uitzending opnieuw geïllustreerd, onder meer tijdens een tenenkrommend Tweede Kamerdebat van de Raad Buitenlandse Zaken op 10 april. Dat ging grotendeels over Gaza en de moord op de Palestijnse hulpverleners. 

In reactie op de door de New York Times gepubliceerde video had Veldkamp in een schandalige tweet een dag voor het debat bekendgemaakt de Israëlische ambassadeur te hebben ontboden. De minister wilde 'opheldering' en voelde zich genoodzaakt zijn 'zorgen over te brengen'.

Let wel: de zorgen waren er volgens deze tweet niet vanwege de misdadigheid van de aanval, maar juist vanwege de veiligheid van Israël en de gijzelaars. Dat Israël achter de moordpartij zat, was blijkbaar niet het benoemen waard. Uit het Kamerdebat bleek bovendien dat het gesprek met de Israëlische ambassadeur niet door Veldkamp zelf, maar door een ambtenaar was gevoerd. Tot zover het met elkaar aan tafel gaan om 'dingen voor elkaar te krijgen'. 

Zorgen. Geen woede. Geen sancties. Het is schandalig dat de minister na 1,5 jaar genocide en de zoveelste moordpartij, notabene gericht op zorgverleners, niet verder komt dan deze tweet. 

Militaire samenwerking | Eerste Kamerdebat over defensieverdrag met Israël uitgesteld

Over twee weken zou de Eerste Kamer in debat gaan over het defensieverdrag (SOFA-verdrag) met Israël. Het debat is nu uitgesteld. Er is nog geen nieuwe datum voor het debat.

Ook de Adviesraad Internationale Vraagstukken (AIV), onder leiding van oud-minister Bert Koenders vindt dat Nederland het defensieverdrag pas mag tekenen als Israël de uitspraken van het Internationaal Gerechtshof en het Internationaal Strafhof respecteert.TRF en Koenders dienen daaraan dan nog toe te voegen: en eerst moeten ook alle alle rekeningen met  de Palestijnen worden vereffend voor de on-voor-stel-bare hel die door Israël jegens de Palestijnen is aangericht. Maar dat laatste, daar heeft TRF, en die Koenders, klaarblijkelijk lak aan!

Interview | De onzichtbare strijd van Palestijnse christenen

The Rights Forum spreekt met Rifaat Kassis (Kairos Palestina) over de christelijke gemeenschap in Palestina. Die gaat gebukt onder de Israëlische bezetting en verdwijnt tussen de geopolitieke belangen en Israëlische nimmer aflatende beestachtigheden

Rondetafelgesprek | Hoe gaat het nu op de Westelijke Jordaanoever?

De laatste tijd zijn wat betreft bezet Palestijns gebied de ogen vooral gericht op Gaza. Maar hoe zit het op de bezette Westelijke Jordaanoever? Hoe zit het precies met de nederzettingen in het gebied? En hoe spelen Nederlanders een rol in de bezetting? Wat kunnen wij eraan doen? En wat voor toekomst zit er in het gebied?

Podcast | Twee nieuwe afleveringen

Zuid-Afrika presenteert overtuigend bewijs voor Israëlische genocide

Even overtuigend wordt aangetoond dat Israël de door het Internationaal Gerechtshof opgelegde maatregelen heeft geschonden. Die hadden tot doel om genocide te voorkomen hangende de door Zuid-Afrika aangespannen ‘genocide-zaak’, waarin de uitspraak pas in 2026 wordt verwacht.

Uit onze agenda
zaterdag 12 april t/m zaterdag 19 april

Er zullen de komende weken meerdere demonstraties georganiseerd worden, waarbij ook The Rights Forum betrokken is. Houd voor actuele informatie de agenda op onze website in de gaten.

Demonstraties en wakes
• Wake op zaterdag 12 april in Groningen, Waagplein (13.00 uur)
• Herdenkingsprotest van Plant een Olijfboom op zondag 13 april in Leiden, Beestenmarkt (12.00 uur)
• Sit-in rijksambtenaren op donderdag 17 april in Den Haag, Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken, Rijnstraat 8 (12.00 uur)
• Wekelijks protest tegen de genocide op de Palestijnen op donderdag 17 april in Zaandam, bij de ingang van het station (17.30 uur)
• Wake voor Palestina op zaterdag 19 april in Den Bosch, Burgemeester Loeffplein (12.00 uur)

Culturele evenementen
• Benefietavond Gaza Beyond Headlines op zaterdag 12 april in Nijmegen, Molenweg 95 (18.30 uur)
• Filmvertoning No Other Land en nagesprek op zaterdag 12 april in Amsterdam, Filmhuis Rialto de Pijp (16.45 uur)
• Palestine Cafe Eindhoven op zondag 13 april in Eindhoven, Huiskamer, Alard Du Hamelstraat 53 (14.30 uur)
• Seminar 'Silencing Palestinians and the Gaza Genocide in Public Discourse' op maandag 14 april in Nijmegen, Radboud Universiteit (12.30 uur)
• Filmvertoning The Palestine Laboratory op woensdag 16 april in Utrecht, BAK, Auditorium (18.00 uur)
• Tegenlicht Meet Up ‘De kunst van het wegkijken’ op donderdag 17 april in Deventer, Bibliotheek Deventer, Theaterzaal (19.30 uur)
• Fundraiser for Gaza: To a Land Unknown op donderdag 17 april in Amsterdam, Kriterion (19.00 uur)
• Filmvertoning No Other Land en nagesprek op donderdag 17 april in Enschede, Tankstation, Deurningerstraat 28 (19.30 uur)

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11 april 2025

JVP Haggadah and Passover resources

1254.

11 april 2025

ICE is targeting legal residents, silencing free speech and dissent, and making an example of anyone who dares to speak up for Palestine. We can’t let them win!

A few weeks ago, Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish Muslim graduate student, was detained by ICE - i.e. Foreigners Police - just weeks after being doxxed by Canary Mission for her vocal support of Palestinian rights.

Rumeysa has not been charged with any crime. Her only “offense” is speaking out against genocide and standing up for Palestinian human rights. Detaining a peaceful scholar, denying her access to healthcare, and isolating her in a cell is not immigration enforcement; it’s political persecution.

We’re calling on our community to rise up and demand her immediate release. No one should be detained, deported, or disappeared for standing on the side of justice.

We cannot allow this administration to weaponize ICE to silence pro-Palestinian voices. What’s happening to Rumeysa Ozturk, Mahmoud Khalil, and dozens of other students, professors, fellows, and residents isn’t isolated; it’s part of a coordinated, government-enabled assault on free speech and dissent. Rumeysa, among others, is being made an example of, a test case for how far they can go to criminalize political expression. And if we stay silent, this repression will only grow.

In solidarity,
American Muslims for Palestine (AMP)

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11 april 2025

Just now, an immigration judge issued a devastating ruling that student activist and soon-to-be father Mahmoud Khalil can be deported based on outrageous and baseless charges of the Trump administration.

A memo from Secretary of State Marco Rubio released earlier this week outlines the government’s only “evidence” in the case against Mahmoud: that Mahmoud’s “beliefs, statements, or associations” – particularly his participation in pro-Palestinian protests – pose a threat to U.S. foreign policy interests.

It is clear: Mahmoud is being targeted for his pro-Palestinian stance. But the implications of this ruling go far beyond Palestine activism.

This troubling justification relies on an obscure provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act that allows for the revocation of legal status based on vaguely defined foreign policy concerns, even when no laws have been broken. This a dangerous precedent – one that directly threatens the constitutional right to dissent and targets activists for their political beliefs.

Today’s devastating ruling is not the end of the fight for justice for Mahmoud.

Mahmoud’s legal team will continue to seek bail and demonstrate that the Trump administration’s actions are unconstitutional. Meanwhile, he remains unjustly detained – separated from his home and his wife, who is expecting their child this month.

Make no mistake – the administration’s efforts to target students like Mahmoud and suppress pro-Palestinian activism depend on the silence and complicity of university leadership.

Write to University Leadership: Protect your students

Instead of protecting their students, leadership at some of the top universities in the U.S. have actually facilitated the targeting, abduction, and criminalization of students exercising their constitutional rights to demand an end to complicity in Israel’s genocide in Gaza, by turning over their information to the government and cooperating with law enforcement and ICE, the Foreigners Police.

Their capitulation to the authoritarian demands of the Trump regime has helped usher in a new era of McCarthyism, with the goal of crushing any dissent and punishing activists for speaking up against injustice in the U.S. and Palestine.

Universities have a responsibility to do more to protect their students from unjust government actions. The Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration—supported by 86 universities and associations—has taken a powerful stand by submitting an amicus brief demanding an end to “ideological deportations.” This is not just a legal issue; it's a moral imperative. Every institution of higher learning must actively oppose these authoritarian practices and defend the rights, safety, and academic freedom of their students.

Write to the leadership at dozens of universities across the country to demand they push back against authoritarianism and protect the rights, safety and wellbeing of their students, faculty, and staff.

Help us stop the tide of totalitarianism by demanding universities use their power to be on the right side of history.
 

With resolve,

Sandra Tamari
Executive Director
Adalah Justice Project

Give to expand Palestinian-led organizing

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11 april 2025

TELL UNIVERSITIES TO FIGHT BACK

• Tens of thousands marched on Washington for Palestine this past weekend, refusing to be silenced.

• Take action with workers who are pressuring Google to drop dystopian contracts with Lockheed Martin, U.S. Customs & Border Protection (CBP), and Israel. Write to Google now and demand they drop these contracts.
  

1251.

11 april 2025

Today's headlines

Trump administration admits it’s trying to deport Mahmoud Khalil over his political beliefs

The Trump administration’s push to deport Mahmoud Khalil is based solely on an accusation of “antisemitism," according to a two-page memo signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and revealed by the Associated Press.

‘Psychologically tortured to the last minute’: Ahmad Manasra, arrested at 13, is finally free after a decade in Israeli prison

Qassam Muaddi

Ahmad Manasra was arrested at 13 and kept in solitary confinement for years. He was diagnosed with schizophrenia in prison and was at serious risk of self-harm. His release to a remote location far from his family was Israel’s final act of torture.

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11 april 2025

Some ten years ago, when I was taking my first steps in journalism, young Palestinian reporters would often debate whether Palestine was over-covered or under-covered in global media. We disagreed on the answer, but we all agreed on one thing: there was something fundamentally wrong with how mainstream media presented Palestine. That’s why I joined Mondoweiss.

We didn’t realize just how dangerous this absence of Palestinian voices was until the genocide in Gaza began after October 7. In the media, the immediate response was a flood of familiar talking points—a copy-pasted narrative not just about Gaza but about the entire Palestinian story. While bombs fell on homes, hospitals, schools, and mosques, our voices were erased. That erasure dehumanized us. It helped enable genocide.

Lazy journalism that ignores context and erases the collective Palestinian experience comes at a price—and that price is being paid with blood, especially by Palestinian children. Mondoweiss is different.

We don’t just report events; we explain them. We offer history, political context, and, most importantly, the human experience—because we live it.

Sincerely,
Qassam Muaddi
West Bank Correspondent

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11 april 2025

Humanitarian Situation Update #279
West Bank

Two brothers who were injured by Israeli settlers when they broke into their tents in Jinba, Masafer Yatta (Hebron) on 28 March 2025. Photo: OCHA

Key Highlights

• On 8 April, Israeli forces gave closure orders, effective in 30 days, for six UNRWA schools in East Jerusalem, impacting about 800 boys and girls.
• About 700,000 Palestinians across the West Bank needed food assistance in 2024, a nearly 100 per cent increase compared with the period before October 2023, WFP reports.
• After being displaced by settler violence and access restrictions in February, five households in the Jordan Valley were displaced by demolitions by Israeli authorities.
• Over 100 structures were demolished by Israeli authorities across the West Bank between 25 March and 7 April for lacking building permits, roughly half of which were in the Jordan Valley area.
• Nearly half of over 40 settler attacks documented in the last two weeks affected Bedouin and herding communities, including incidents involving arson, break-ins, and destruction of critical livelihood sources.

Humanitarian Developments

• Between 25 March and 7 April, Israeli forces killed nine Palestinians, including two children, and injured at least 130 others, including 34 children, across the West Bank. An additional Palestinian fatality after 7 April is reported under “Developments in the northern West Bank.” For more information on casualties and further breakdowns of data, please see the monthly West Bank Snapshot.
  • On 25 March, Israeli forces shot, killed and withheld the body of a Palestinian man from Al ‘Eizariya town, allegedly after attempting to enter East Jerusalem without a permit near Al ‘Eizariya.
  • On 25 March, an Israeli drone strike killed an 18-year-old Palestinian after Israeli forces surrounded a shop in Qalqiliya city and exchanged fire with him. Israeli forces withheld the body and injured two other Palestinians with live ammunition.
  • On 26 March, Israeli forces shot, killed and withheld the body of an 18-year-old Palestinian man on the road between Huwwara town and Beita village, in Nablus governorate. According to the Israeli military, they shot a masked man holding stones.
  • On 29 March, Israeli forces shot and killed a Palestinian man after surrounding a house during a raid in Tammun town, south of Tubas city.
  • On 2 April, Israeli forces shot and killed a Palestinian man after raiding his house in the Old City of Nablus and detained his brother.
  • On 2 April, Israeli forces shot and killed a 16-year-old Palestinian boy and injured two others during a raid in Silat al Harithiya village, in Jenin governorate. According to the village council, Palestinians threw explosive devices at Israeli military jeeps at the village’s main entrance, and Israeli forces fired live ammunition at the Palestinians.
  • On 3 April, Israeli forces shot, killed and withheld the body of a Palestinian man, after they allegedly threw stones at Israeli vehicles near Husan village, in Bethlehem governorate.
  • On 4 April, Israeli forces shot and killed a Palestinian man in Jenin city. The forces were searching the Palestinian man’s house and shot him as he attempted to flee in his vehicle.
  • On 6 April, Israeli forces shot and killed a 14-year-old Palestinian boy and injured two other children with live ammunition in Turmus’ayya town, in Ramallah governorate. According to the Israeli military, the boys were throwing stones at Israeli vehicles travelling on Road 60 after which they were shot. Israeli forces detained one of the injured boys for about an hour and handed over the body of the deceased boy to Palestinian paramedics.
• Between 25 March and 7 April 2025, OCHA documented 44 attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians that resulted in casualties or property damage across 35 Palestinian communities in the West Bank—nearly half of which were in Bedouin or herding communities. These attacks led to the injury of 25 Palestinians, including five children, and one foreign national. Two Israeli children were also injured by Palestinians in Israeli settler attacks against Palestinians. At least nine incidents—some occurring more than once in the same community—involved settlers breaking into Palestinian communities, homes, or animal shelters, often at night or in the early morning hours. In total, at least 10 homes and 290 trees and saplings were vandalized or uprooted, and six vehicles, a chicken coop, and agricultural equipment were fully or partially burned.
• One of the most severe incidents occurred on 1 April, when dozens of settlers broke into Duma village, in Nablus governorate, setting fire to five vehicles, partially burning a chicken coop, and spraying graffiti on the walls of several homes. During the same incident, Israeli forces raided the village and reportedly fired tear gas canisters and live ammunition, injuring three Palestinians who were transported to a hospital. Another major attack in Jurish village, also in Nablus governorate, accounted for the uprooting of 200 olive trees—the largest single loss of trees reported during the period. Water infrastructure was also targeted in at least five incidents, including damage to irrigation networks, water tanks, and pipelines—most notably the destruction of a 1,700-metre pipeline serving over five dunams of farmland in An Nazla ash Sharqiya village, in Tulkarm governorate. At least 10 other incidents involved harm to livestock or the theft of animals, including in Deir Dibwan and Al-Mughayyir (Ramallah), Al Farisiya-Nab’a al Ghazal (Tubas) in the northern Jordan Valley, and Kafr ad Dik (Salfit), where settlers stole donkeys, killed sheep, or injured animals belonging to Palestinian herders.
• Since early 2023, the area of Masafer Yatta in the south Hebron hills has seen a sharp and sustained escalation in settler violence, resulting in both casualties and widespread property damage. The frequency of such incidents has risen dramatically—from an average of 1.5 incidents per month in 2021 and 2022 to nearly five incidents per month over the past two years. This upward trend has continued into 2025, with OCHA documenting almost six incidents per month in the first quarter alone. Compared to the baseline average in the past 15 years, the scale of increase is stark: only 18 incidents were documented between 2006 and 2020, while 180 incidents were recorded between 2021 and 2024.
• Over the past two weeks, Jinba community in Masafer Yatta, one of 13 communities located within the boundaries of an Israeli-designated firing zone (Firing Zone 918), witnessed at least two attacks involving both Israeli settlers and Israeli forces. On 28 March, an Israeli settler reportedly riding a quad bike, attacked a Palestinian man and his 17-year-old son with a stick, causing serious injuries. According to information documented by OCHA, the two injured Palestinians barely made their way to a nearby community where the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) transported them to hospital. Less than two hours later, a group of armed Israeli settlers who are believed to reside in nearby settlements, broke into a residential shelter, injured a 60-year-old man and his two sons (aged 14 and 16 years), and damaged belongings and windows. All were transported to hospital, with the 14-year-old boy being in critical condition. Residents subsequently threw stones at the settlers, injuring two 17-year-old settlers according to Israeli sources, after which Israeli forces raided the community and fired stun grenades. Israeli forces then gathered all the males in the community, handcuffed and blindfolded them, and detained them. After about an hour, Israeli forces released 13 of the detainees and continued to detain the remaining 22, including a boy. Less than 24 hours later, in the early morning hours of 29 March, Israeli forces raided the community, forcing its residents out of their shelters and causing extensive damage to 22 residential shelters, a school, a clinic, a mosque, animal shelters and agricultural assets. Local sources reported that Israeli settlers wearing military-like uniforms participated in the raid, during which two sheep were killed and three went missing. The forces withdrew from the community after four hours, with no arrests reported.
• Over the past two decades, the Israeli authorities have built dozens of road sections (often made of tunnels, underpasses and sunken roads), reconnecting Palestinian areas that were cut off from each other by the Barrier, referring to these as “fabric of life” roads. On 29 March, the Israeli security cabinet approved the construction of one such road between Az Za’ayem and Al Eizariya towns, in Jerusalem governorate. The new road will connect to an existing section of the same network that has already been completed between ‘Anata and Az Za’ayem. This alternative road network would serve as the main route for all Palestinian traffic travelling between the central and southern West Bank, effectively diverting it from the current route via Road 1 linking Jerusalem to Jericho and which passes by Ma’ale Adumim settlement. This area is slated to be encircled by the Barrier, which was approved by the Israeli Cabinet in 2006, and has been designated by the Israeli authorities for the E1 settlement plan and the expansion of Ma’ale Adumim settlement. For many years, the humanitarian community has raised concerns about the humanitarian impact of settlement expansion and the construction of the Barrier around Ma’ale Adumim settlement. Among others, there are concerns the plans would effectively sever the geographic connection between the central and southern West Bank, heighten the risk of forcible displacement facing 18 Bedouin communities living in the area, and increase demolitions in these and other surrounding Palestinian communities, including those that lie along, or are adjacent to, the path of the road network being created. Over the past two weeks, nine structures were demolished in Al Fheidat area of Anata town and North 'Anata Bedouin community, both located in Area C of Jerusalem governorate, on the periphery of the “fabric of life” road network.

• Between 25 March and 7 April, OCHA documented the demolition of 105 structures across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, for lacking Israeli-issued building permits, which are nearly impossible to obtain. This led to the displacement of 122 Palestinians, including 64 children, and otherwise affected over 200 people who had livelihood structures or water and sanitation facilities demolished. These include 103 structures in Area C of the West Bank and two structures located in East Jerusalem.
• Demolitions in Area C included one mass demolition incident on 6 April in Khirbet ar Ras al Ahmar community, located in an Israeli-designated firing zone. Israeli forces demolished 33 structures, including 11 residential tents, 16 animal structures and six mobile latrines, in addition to damaging water tanks and solar panels. The demolition displaced five households, comprising 33 people, including 19 children and six women, who had been forcibly displaced in early February 2025 from Ein al Hilwa - Wadi al Faw community, also in the northern Jordan Valley, due to settler violence. This is the highest number of structures demolished in a single incident in the Jordan Valley since November 2020, when about 80 structures were demolished and 70 people were displaced in Humsa - Al Bqai'a herding community. Out of the structures demolished in Area C, 48 were demolished in mostly herding communities in the Jordan Valley area, displacing 33 people. In 2025, the monthly average of structures demolished (46) and people displaced (30) in Jordan Valley communities have both doubled compared with 2024, when on average of 23 structures were demolished and 15 people were displaced per month in the area.
• On 8 April, according to the Commissioner-General of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, Israeli officials from the Jerusalem Municipality and Israeli forces forcibly entered and presented closure orders, effective in 30 days, to six UNRWA-run schools in East Jerusalem, impacting about 800 students who may not be able to complete the academic year. He stated: “These illegal closure orders come in the wake of Israeli Knesset legislation seeking to curtail UNRWA operations. UNRWA is committed to stay and deliver education and other basic services to Palestine Refugees in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, in accordance with the General Assembly resolution mandated to the Agency.” The Director of UNRWA Affairs for the West Bank, Roland Friedrich, also reiterated that “UNRWA schools are operationally independent and inviolable under international law.” In a separate incident on the same day, Israeli forces raided Al Quds University, firing tear gas, stun grenades and live ammunition. PRCS reported that at least 26 Palestinians were injured.
• Between 25 March and 7 April, according to information documented by OCHA, Israeli forces raided 12 refugee camps across the West Bank, resulting in the injury of at least 40 Palestinians, including nine children, and the detention of at least 30 people. In one incident on 25 March, Israeli forces raided about 15 houses in al Fawwar refugee camp, in Hebron governorate, causing significant damage to furniture and belongings. During the operation, Israeli forces fired tear gas, stun grenades, and live ammunition and Palestinian threw stones at the forces. As a result, a 14-year-old Palestinian child was injured by a live bullet and a two-year-old girl suffered tear gas inhalation. Israeli forces searched and damaged a PRCS ambulance as well as physically assaulted and injured two paramedics. Another raid on 2 April took place in Ad Duheisha refugee camp, in Bethlehem governorate, where Israeli forces raided more than eight homes and turned several houses into detention centres. Thirteen people were injured during confrontations between Palestinians, who threw stones, and Israeli forces, who physically assaulted ten Palestinians and shot two others with live ammunitions. Eight homes sustained extensive damage to their personal belongings. Israeli soldiers were reportedly seen posting flyers on the walls warning residents of further consequences due to armed activities. More than 15 Palestinians were also detained during the seven-hour operation.
• On the fourth and final Friday of Ramadan, 28 March, it was estimated that about 10,000 Palestinians holding West Bank ID cards crossed through checkpoints to reach Al Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem. In addition, on 26 March, some 8,000 Palestinians holding West Bank ID cards crossed for Laylat al Qadr, a sacred night in Islam that falls sometime during the last 10 nights of Ramadan. In total, over 44,000 Palestinians are estimated to have cross through checkpoints during Ramadan in 2025. This figure is slightly higher than the number of people who crossed during Ramadan in 2024 (35,000) but is only 11 per cent of the estimated 388,000 people who accessed East Jerusalem during Ramadan in 2023, before 7 October. According to measures announced by Israeli authorities, men over 55 and women over 50, with a valid magnetic ID card and a one-day Israeli-issued permit, and children under 12 accompanied by a parent with a birth certificate, were eligible to cross into East Jerusalem through two Barrier checkpoints – Qalandiya in the north and Gilo/300 in the south. Restrictions on age have tightened compared with the period between 2017 and 2019, when men over 40 and women of all ages, with a valid magnetic ID card and a one-day Israeli-issued permit, and children under 12 accompanied by a parent with a birth certificate, were eligible to cross into East Jerusalem.

• In Hebron’s restricted H2 area, it is estimated that 4,500 Palestinians performed Friday prayers at Al Ibrahimi Mosque on the fourth Friday of Ramadan, compared with about 5,000 people in 2024. In 2025, about 23,000 people were able to access the Mosque during Ramadan, compared with 14,000 in 2024. Israeli forces allowed men over 50 and women of all ages to enter without inspection, while men between 27 and 50 years of age were subject to inspection. Males under 27 were generally denied entry unless accompanied by family members. Access was only permitted via Al Ibrahimi Mosque Entrance checkpoint. Abu Rish and As Salaymeh checkpoints (CP 160), which are usually open throughout the week, remained closed for the fourth consecutive Friday, hindering access to the mosque especially for the residents who live outside the restricted area of H2, forcing them to make a detour to reach the mosque. Access within the Ibrahimi Mosque was also restricted, as worshippers were allowed in the Muslim section of the building, which makes up approximately 35 per cent of the total space. In previous years, 65 per cent of the mosque, would be open every Friday during Ramadan. Just over a week after Ramadan ended, on 7 April, Israeli forces restricted access to the Mosque by placing locks on four rooms leading to shrines, which would normally be administered by the Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs and Hebron Municipality. On the same day, Israeli forces detained two Ibrahimi Mosque employees, including the director of the Mosque, confiscated their phones and banned them from entering the Mosque for 15 days.
• In the West Bank, escalating instability and economic downturn in 2024 have deepened food insecurity, according to the annual country report by the UN World Food Programme (WFP) in the State of Palestine. Escalating violence and movement restrictions significantly increased economic hardship, food insecurity and limited the access of human actors. The Food Security Cluster estimated that at least 700,000 people needed food assistance in 2024, a 17 per cent increase from the start of the year and a 99 per cent increase compared with the period prior 7 October 2023. Food consumption remained below target levels, with 40 per cent of WFP-supported households maintaining borderline and poor food consumption, and an increase in negative coping strategies was observed, with 67 per cent of households adopting crisis or emergency measures (up from 46 per cent in 2023). To meet growing needs, WFP delivered life-saving food and cash assistance to some 283,000 people in the West Bank in 2024. Additionally, WFP implemented 12 climate-resilient agriculture interventions, focusing on asset creation and rehabilitation for 6,350 people (1,651 women and 4,699 men). These included the establishment of greenhouses, home gardens, hydroponics, beekeeping, animal sheds, and food processing facilities. The activities were implemented in 43 localities in five governorates across the West Bank (Bethlehem, Hebron, Jenin, Tulkarem and Qalqilya).

Developments in the northern West Bank

• On 23 February, the Israeli authorities announced that they instructed the military to prepare for a “long stay” in the northern West Bank refugee camps. Referring to the announcement, on 3 April, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, stated: “Israeli operations in the northern West Bank have killed hundreds of people, destroyed entire refugee camps and makeshift medical sites, and displaced over 40,000 Palestinians. The announcement that residents must not return to their homes for a year raises serious concerns about long-term mass displacement.” According to the Jenin and Tulkarm Municipalities, the presence of Israeli forces is mainly concentrated inside the refugee camps and their surroundings, with at least three to four military patrols present throughout the cities per day.
• On 8 April, Israeli forces shot, killed and withheld the body of a Palestinian woman from Bidya village (Salfit) who allegedly threw stones at Israeli forces and approached them with a knife near Ariel settlement. As of 10 April, over 90 per cent of Palestinians killed by Israeli forces in the West Bank in 2025 were in the six northern West Bank governorates of Jenin, Tubas, Nablus, Tulkarm, Qalqilya and Salfit.
• Seven Israelis, including five members of Israeli forces, were killed by Palestinians in the West Bank so far in 2025, all of them in the northern West Bank.
• On 9 April, Israeli forces launched an operation that lasted for 24 hours in Balata refugee camp, east of Nablus city. According to the Palestinian District Coordination Office, Israeli authorities informed them that a curfew would be imposed within the camp for 24 hours. Initial reports indicate that Israeli forces are conducting a large-scale search and arrest operation inside the camp, entering homes and detaining residents. Residents of four homes have reportedly been evacuated from the camp, resulting in the displacement of eight families.
• The UN and its partners continue to respond to the deepening needs of displaced families in affected areas in the northern West Bank, including by providing food, water and sanitation assistance, health services, and psycho-social support.
• UNRWA has expanded its health services for displaced people by establishing 11 alternative health points in Jenin and Tulkarm governorates, two working five days a week, while the other nine have two mobile health teams rotating during the week. Provided services encompass healthcare for patients, provision of medications, maternal health and vaccination, while ensuring referrals for specialised healthcare services through an electronic system. UNRWA also keeps operating its four pre-existing health points in Jenin governorate and has a team working at the Ministry of Health (MoH) clinic in Jenin city, providing vaccination to refugee children as well as providing services through an electronic referral system in five towns in the Jenin governorate. Moreover, a mobile health team was deployed to serve five areas surrounding the camps.
• At all health points, UNRWA psychological counsellors provide mental health and psycho-social support (MHPSS), while UNRWA field teams provide psychological support, including sessions for children and women and psychological first aid to more than 3,000 families. For one such family interviewed by UNRWA, a mother of three who was recently widowed, shares the psychological trauma of having their home demolished and being displaced from Tulkarm refugee camp: “It was an indescribable experience. My six-year-old daughter lost the ability to speak due to the trauma after our home was raided, and we were forced to evacuate.”
• During the last week of Ramadan, humanitarian partners provided about 850 food parcels, including fresh vegetables to displaced families in Jenin and Tulkarm. This distribution is part of a collaborative effort between humanitarian organizations and the private sector, which plays a key role in reaching vulnerable populations. It addresses the immediate needs of displaced families while also supporting the livelihood of small-scale food producers. The initiative will continue as part of ongoing efforts to strengthen food security and support both displaced families and small-scale farmers during this challenging period.
• Access to Water Sanitation and Hygiene remains precarious in areas affected by Israeli operations. On 3 April, Israeli military bulldozers damaged an 800-metre segment of a road in the Iktaba neighbourhood, in Tulkarm city. According to Tulkarm Municipality, the bulldozing of the road damaged water and sewage networks, causing disconnections; the municipality managed to rehabilitate the networks the following day. In Jenin city, at least 15,000 people still depend on water trucking to have access to water.
• Since the beginning of the Israeli forces’ operation in the northern West Bank on 21 January, humanitarian partners have distributed over 3,000 hygiene kits, about 320 water storage tanks, 20 mobile latrines, and more than 1,000 solid waste containers. Furthermore, about 26,600 metres of water and sanitation networks were installed or repaired and 8,640 cubic metres of water was distributed to displaced families in Jenin, Tulkarm, and Tubas.
• On 6 April, in-person governmental education resumed in Jenin and Tulkarem cities for the first time, except for six schools (four in Tulkarm, two in Jenin) that remain closed due to their proximity to affected refugee camps. Additionally, ten UNRWA schools in the camps remain closed, serving over 4,400 students (four in Jenin camp, four in Tulkarm camp and two in Nur Shams camp).

Funding

• As of 10 April 2025, Member States have disbursed approximately US$195.5 million out of the $4.07 billion (4.8 per cent) requested to meet the most critical humanitarian needs of three million out of 3.3 million people identified as requiring assistance in Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, in 2025, under the 2025 Flash Appeal for the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT). Nearly 88 per cent of the requested funds are for humanitarian response in Gaza, with just over 12 per cent for the West Bank. Moreover, during February 2025, the OPT Humanitarian Fund (oPt HF) managed 87 ongoing projects, totalling $62.6 million, to address urgent needs in the Gaza Strip (86 per cent) and the West Bank (14 per cent). Of these projects, 50 are being implemented by international non-governmental organizations (INGOs), 25 by national NGOs and 12 by UN agencies. Notably, 37 out of the 62 projects implemented by INGOs or the UN are being implemented in collaboration with national NGOs. For more information, please see OCHA’s Financial Tracking Service webpage and the oPt HF webpage.

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11 april 2025

“I used to feel like I’m working at Lockheed Martin. Now I am.” - current Google worker

Last week, Google took two massive steps towards a dystopian nightmare.

First, it announced a partnership with Lockheed Martin, the world’s largest weapons manufacturer, to equip missiles and bombs with AI technology. Days later, reporting revealed that Google is working with U.S. Customs & Border Protection (CPB) to “upgrade the virtual border wall” using AI, installing surveillance and machine learning systems built by notorious Israeli military contractor Elbit Systems.

And yesterday, Google doubled down on its alignment with genocidal regimes, announcing a new partnership with the United Arab Emirates, a government directly involved in the genocide unfolding in Sudan.

This is not a sci-fi show. This is our reality. And Google is choosing to build a future that even Black Mirror wouldn’t dare to script.

Right now, Google is hosting its highest profile event of the year, Google Cloud Next.

While they court press, we have an opportunity to flood Google’s marketing team with one clear message:

Google must drop its contracts with the Israeli military, CBP, and Lockheed Martin.

These projects are deeply connected: Google is using AI to weaponize borders, advance genocide, and profit from global violence. Through Project Nimbus, it already supports the Israeli military’s occupation and assault on Gaza. Now, it’s expanding its role, helping Lockheed Martin build deadlier weapons and empowering CBP to surveil, criminalize, abduct and deport vulnerable communities, like asylum seekers and others seeking refuge.

This future isn’t inevitable. It’s a choice. And we can choose to fight back.

Google workers are rising up to demand an end to the military exploitation of their labor. The workers behind No Tech for Apartheid are leading the charge, calling for the tech industry to stop fueling authoritarianism, mass surveillance, deportation, and war profiteering.

As Ray, one of the 50 Google workers fired after last year’s historic sit-ins put it:

“The oppression of Palestinians in Palestine is deeply intertwined with the oppression of immigrants in the US. It is clear Google leadership never intended for their war profiteering to end with Project Nimbus, and they still don’t intend to end it with Lockheed Martin and CBP. Workers and community must force Google to end it.”

Last year, Google illegally fired over 50 workers for staging historic coast-to-coast sit-ins at Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian’s personal office and in the New York City Google HQ against Project Nimbus. Now, as workers continue to organize against these Israeli military contracts inside Google and Amazon, they need to know that they have supporters across the world.

Tell Google leadership: Listen to your workers. End Project Nimbus. End the CBP and Lockheed Martin contracts. Recommit to human rights.

This week thousands will gather in Vegas for Google’s biggest in-person event of the year. At Google Cloud Next, Google will flaunt its latest AI tools and try to whitewash its image, all while scrambling to catch up to OpenAI and Amazon in the AI arms race.

To promote its new partnerships and the conference, their press team has published contact information for its communications team.

This is our opportunity to flood their inboxes and send a clear message: you can’t cover up genocide, war profiteering and mass surveillance with a fancy conference.

Together, we can ensure that as they roll out their shiny new products, they hear loud and clear: We stand with the workers—and we won’t let AI be used to fuel genocide and state violence.

For our collective liberation,

Audrey Bruner
Development & Digital Director
Adalah Justice Project

Our mailing address is:
Adalah Justice Project

1247.

10 april 2025

1246.

10 april 2025

Today's headlines

Israel targeted my colleague in an airstrike, claiming that he was a Hamas fighter. Israel is lying.

Israel targeted my colleague, Hassan Eslayeh, claiming that he was a Hamas fighter. This isn’t the first time Israel has used this lie to justify targeting journalists, paramedics, and rescue workers.

Gaza is not Deir Yassin, and it never will be

77 years ago today, my family's history was forever altered by the massacre in Deir Yassin. Because of it, I see everything through the filter of the Nakba — and the Gaza genocide through the lens of sumud.

Hamas files challenge to overturn UK terror designation

Hebh Jamal

Hamas's application to the UK Home Secretary to remove its designation as a terrorist organization aims to build international support for Palestinian resistance and affirm the group's role as a political actor in determining the future of Gaza.

1245.

9 april 2025

This week, we published a new collection of testimonies from soldiers who fought in Gaza in 2023-2024. "The Perimeter", now available here and on our site, chronicles the systematic annihilation and expropriation of entire villages and agricultural zones - anything that stood in the way of creating the new Gaza buffer zone, a project which the IDF “completed” last December. It’s already been covered in The Guardian, the Washington Post, and CNN, among many others (links below).

Within the first month of the war, the IDF began creating the new buffer zone, reaching between 800 meters and 1.5 kilometers into the Gaza Strip from the border. The logic of maintaining perpetual Israeli military control by creating such an expansive perimeter has led to the wholesale destruction of this vast Palestinian territory. Around 16% of the Gaza Strip, where close to a quarter of a million Palestinians once lived. Annihilation, expropriation, and expulsion are immoral and must never be normalized or legitimized.

The creation of the perimeter constitutes collective punishment of those who lived in this area, as well as an obstacle to any future reconstruction efforts for the Gaza Strip. Not only is this morally abhorrent, but it also perpetuates the same paradigm and policies that have led us to this point.

Within the Perimeter, the IDF created a vast expanse where rules of engagement were permissive and constantly changing; where civilian homes were methodically destroyed en masse, alongside infrastructure and agriculture critical to Gaza’s future self-sufficiency and rehabilitation.

Since the Perimeter’s “completion” in December 2024, the IDF has broken the ceasefire deal and returned to heavy bombing of dense civilian areas. According to Defense Minister Israel Katz, it plans “to seize large areas that will be added to Israel’s security zones.” Hundreds of thousands more civilians have already been displaced, including the entire population of Rafah. Today, Haaretz reported that Rafah and the neighborhoods that surround it, which make up around 20% of the Gaza Strip, will be swallowed up completely and added to this ever-expanding Perimeter.

Khuza’ah, a town of around 12,000 people, before and after being razed and swallowed up by the new Perimeter

This new collection of soldiers' testimonies allows us to examine some of the methods the IDF used while establishing the new Perimeter, to better understand its plans for the future.

Methodical mass-destruction

Perhaps the most recurring theme in these testimonies is the sheer scale of the destruction. Around 3,500 buildings were destroyed “to the foundation” by IDF bulldozers and explosives, as was an industrial zone built after the Oslo Accords to promote self-sufficiency and trade.

The area was divided into sectors and flattened one by one. Virtually every building was demolished, simply for standing where it stood - as seen in the following exchange between a reservist and one of our interviewers:

"Essentially, everything gets mowed down, everything."
What is ‘everything’?
"Everything is everything. Everything that’s built."
Orchards?
"Yes."
Cowsheds, chicken coops?
"Yes, yes."
Every building and every structure?
"Every building and every structure. Everything."
What does the area look like after?
"Hiroshima. That’s what I would say, Hiroshima."

Warrant Officer | Reserves - Armored Corps | Northern Gaza Strip | November 2023 

Destruction in Rafah, southern Gaza, 20.01.25. Photo: Yousef Zaanoun, Activestills

Rules of engagement

In various periods and areas throughout the Perimeter’s creation, large swathes of the land were turned into massive kill zones. The borders to these kill zones were invisible, shifted constantly, and weren’t communicated to Palestinians - similar to the infamous kill zone surrounding Netzarim Corridor. As one officer told us:

"...there is no system of accountability in general. Anyone who crosses a certain line, that we have defined, is considered a threat and is sentenced to death. That did exist. It was an IDF definition. There was a line.”

Captain | Reserves - Armored Corps | Rafah | October - November 2023

Razing agriculture

During the creation of the Perimeter, the IDF razed around 35% of all agriculture in the Gaza Strip. This will cripple Gaza’s future chances at self-sufficiency by increasing its reliance on food entering from IDF-controlled border crossings, and throw a wrench in the gears of any attempt at rebuilding Gaza to be self-sustaining.

“[The bulldozer took down] mainly fields, agriculture, olive trees, eggplant fields. A very large excavator just comes through and takes out all the soil, kind of rolls it up, flattens it. It was a shame, great agriculture, beautiful eggplants and beautiful cauliflowers.”

Sergeant First Class | Reserves 5th Brigade | Northern Gaza Strip | November-December 2023

Ethnic cleansing

Since the first month of the war, Israeli officials have consistently said that the new Perimeter is here to stay. This means that nearly a quarter of a million people, who once lived in what is now the Perimeter, will be barred from returning and rebuilding their homes. This is ethnic cleansing, plain and simple. 

The release of "The Perimeter" has already been covered in a variety of outlets around the world. See on any of the links below to read:The GuardianThe Washington Post CNN Time Magazine The Times CBC   Le Monde (French)El Diario (Spanish)Il Messaggero (Italian)Publico (Portuguese)De Volkskrant (Dutch)Dagens ETC (Swedish) 


Our mailing address is:

1244.

9 april 2025

The Trump administration has launched a campaign to target pro-Palestine students and activists. People have been abducted off the street in broad daylight and disappeared to shadowy detention centers hundreds of miles from home.

Some were arrested for protesting. Others were targeted simply for being affiliated with Palestinians—or for writing an Op-Ed critical of the U.S.-sponsored genocide.

Let’s be clear: the only “crime” these individuals have committed is speaking out against genocide. And in today’s political climate, telling the truth is enough to make you a target.

At Mondoweiss, we refuse to remain quiet while students are being stripped of their right to free speech. We remain steadfast in our commitment to reporting these repressive tactics and offering a platform for those who are fighting back..

It is the courage of these students, activists, and ordinary people who have stood up for justice over the past 18 months that threatens Israeli apartheid and U.S. imperialism in Palestine and beyond. Because of readers like you, Mondoweiss has brought the voices of this movement to millions around the world.

Our impact is real. More people than ever are questioning their governments’ support for Israel. They are waking up. And the powerful are afraid and desperate.

That’s why U.S. federal agents are using fascist tactics pulled straight from the Israeli colonial playbook: Surveilling social media. Censoring speech. Kidnapping people for their political views.

The goal is submission. Fear. Silence.

But we will not be silenced. And we will not let Donald Trump—or any administration—become our Editor-in-Chief.

We refuse to be intimidated.

Yumna Patel, Editor-in-Chief

1243.

9 april 2025

Today's headlines

Trump must continue to move toward Iran talks, even as Netanyahu tries to derail it

Donald Trump's surprising announcement that talks are starting with Iran gives the White House a pivotal choice: follow pro-Israel hawks calling for a military confrontation with Iran, or chart a diplomatic course that could avert a disastrous war.

West Bank strike highlights Palestinian frustrations with ‘symbolic’ gestures of protest

Qassam Muaddi

Despite widespread participation in a general strike protesting the genocide in Gaza, organized Palestinian forces in the West Bank are experiencing a "moment of weakness," civil society activists say, due to Israel's campaign of terror.

Trump administration widens crackdown, revoking hundreds of student visas

The Trump administration has reportedly revoked hundreds of student visas amid a widening crackdown on the U.S. Palestine movement, with one attorney estimating as many as 1,000 visas have been canceled at universities across the country.

1242.

9 april 2025

In Gaza, Israel has killed a group of emergency workers. We introduce you to the Red Crescent medics among them.

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9 april 2025

1240.

9 april 2025

Humanitarian Situation Update #278
Gaza Strip

Palestinian girls in Al Mawasi, Gaza, where a strike killed people in the tent next to theirs. Photo by OCHA/Olga Cherevko

Key Highlights

• Acts of war in Gaza show utter disregard for human life, top UN officials say, calling on world leaders to act with urgency to save Palestinians in Gaza.
• With no aid entering since 2 March, malnutrition, disease and other preventable conditions are expected to surge, increasing the risk of preventable child deaths, UNICEF warns.
• Medicines and medical consumables are rapidly running out in Gaza, including critically low levels of supplies and blood units for maternal and child health.
• With two-thirds of the Gaza Strip territory designated as “no-go” zones or placed under displacement orders, over 390,000 people have been displaced in three weeks.
• The number of aid workers killed since October 2023 rises to 412.

Humanitarian Developments

• Since 18 March, and for more than three weeks, Israeli forces have escalated bombardment from the air, land and sea across the Gaza Strip and expanded ground operations, resulting in hundreds of casualties, destruction of civilian infrastructure, and large-scale displacement. Humanitarian operations have been stifled by a combination of expanded military activity, the Israeli government’s blockade on the entry of humanitarian aid and commercial supplies for more than a month, killing of aid workers and attacks on their premises, and severe movement restrictions within Gaza. Over 390,000 people are estimated to have been displaced again, according to the Site Management Cluster (SMC), with no safe place to go. On 3 and 6 April, rockets were fired from Gaza towards Israel, most of which were reportedly intercepted. Rocket fire that directly hit the city of Ashkelon on 6 April reportedly resulted in the injury of at least 12 Israelis, according to media reports.
• On 7 April, the heads of OCHA, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS), UNRWA, the World Food Programme (WFP), the World Health Organization (WHO), and the International Organization for Immigration (IOM) issued an urgent appeal to world leaders to act firmly and urgently to save Palestinians in Gaza. In their statement, the top UN officials noted that “acts of war in Gaza…show an utter disregard for human life.”  They also stressed that “assertions that there is now enough food to feed all Palestinians in Gaza are far from the reality on the ground,” warning that key commodities, including essential medical and trauma supplies, are rapidly running out. Underscoring the urgent call, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher, stated that " we are being deliberately blocked from saving lives in Gaza, and so civilians are dying.”
• According to the Ministry of Health (MoH) in Gaza, between 3 and 8 April, as of noon, 287 Palestinians were killed and 912 were injured. Many bodies remain under the rubble of destroyed structures, according to MoH. Since 19 January, when the first phase of the ceasefire took effect, and as of 8 April, a total of 901 bodies were retrieved from across the Gaza Strip, the MoH reported. Between 7 October 2023 and 8 April 2025, the MoH in Gaza reported that at least 50,810 Palestinians have been killed and 115,688 Palestinians injured. This includes 1,449 people killed and 3,647 injured since the escalation of hostilities on 18 March, according to MoH.
• On 1 April, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) reported that one of its staff, working at the MSF urgent care unit in Khan Younis, was killed along with his wife and 28-year-old daughter. MSF said that this is the second killing of an MSF colleague in just two weeks. On 6 April, the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) stated that two of their staff, who worked at the PRCS Al Amal hospital in Khan Younis, were killed along with their three children in an airstrike that hit their home in Khan Younis. In total, since 7 October 2023, at least 412 aid workers, including 291 UN staff, have been killed in Gaza.
• In two separate incidents, three Palestinian journalists were reportedly killed in Khan Younis. On 6 April, a female journalist was killed along with seven other Palestinians, including children and women, when a residential building was reportedly hit in Al Amal neighbourhood in western Khan Younis. In another incident on 7 April, a tent used by journalists and media workers was hit close to Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis, setting it on fire and killing one journalist and another Palestinian. Nine other journalists were injured, including one who succumbed to his wounds on 8 April. Referencing the incident, the Palestinian Journalists Protection Center (PJPC) emphasized that “the deliberate targeting of journalists constitutes a war crime and reflects a broader, systematic pattern of grave human rights violations committed by Israel against civilians—especially journalists—who are entitled to protection under international humanitarian law.” The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate (PJS) also condemned the attack, noting that the number of journalists and media workers killed in the Gaza Strip since October 2023 has increased to 208. According to PJS, in March, seven journalists were killed by Israeli forces, six of whom were in the field and one in his home. Additionally, eight of the journalists’ relatives and family members were killed when the journalists were killed, PJS reported.
• Between 3 and 7 April, other incidents resulting in fatalities were reported across the Gaza Strip, including the following:
  • On 3 April, at about 18:00, four Palestinians were reportedly killed when a school was hit in At Tuffah area, east of Gaza city.
  • On 4 April, at about 01:50, 25 Palestinians, including women and children, were reportedly killed and others were injured or missing under the rubble when a residential building, housing over 50 people, was hit in the Al Manara neighbourhood in southeastern Khan Younis.
  • On 4 April, at about 13:20, three children were reportedly killed and others injured when a bicycle carrying water was hit in Khuza'a in eastern Khan Younis.
  • On 6 April, at about 22:20, at least nine Palestinians, including four children and three women, were reportedly killed and at least 27 others were injured when a residential building was hit in central Khan Younis.
  • On 5 and 7 April, two food charity distribution points (Tekiya) were hit in Khan Younis, resulting in the killing of three Palestinian men on 5 April and seven Palestinians, including two children, among them a girl, on 7 April.
• Between 7 October 2023 and 8 April 2025, according to Israeli forces and official Israeli sources cited in the media, more than 1,607 Israelis and foreign nationals were killed, the majority on 7 October 2023 and its immediate aftermath. This includes 407 soldiers killed, in addition to 2,587 soldiers injured, in Gaza or along the border in Israel since the beginning of the ground operation in October 2023. As of 8 April, it is estimated that 59 Israelis and foreign nationals remain captive in Gaza, including hostages who have been declared dead and whose bodies are being withheld.
• Between 18 March and 6 April, the Israeli military issued 15 displacement orders, placing about 130.8 square kilometres, or 36 per cent of the Gaza Strip, under active displacement orders. In addition to areas placed under displacement orders, the Israeli authorities have requested the UN to coordinate movements to the “no-go” zone along Gaza’s perimeter and along Wadi Gaza where Israeli forces have re-deployed since 20 March. Together, these areas comprise about 66 per cent of the Gaza Strip. According to the Site Management Cluster (SMC), over 390,000 people are estimated to have been displaced between 18 March and 6 April, including families who were sheltering at about 320 displacement sites. Between 3 and 6 April, two displacement orders were issued by the Israeli military, as follows:  
  • On 3 April, a displacement order was issued for Az Zaytoun and Tel El Hawa areas in Gaza governorate, covering approximately 5.1 square kilometres in two neighbourhoods.
  • On 6 April, a displacement order was issued for Az Zawayda and An Nuseirat in Deir al Balah governorate, covering approximately 3.1 square kilometres in nine neighbourhoods. Initial information indicates that the area includes 12 displacement sites with about 8,000 people, one field hospital, three Primary Health Care Centres (PHCs) and three medical points. Two field hospitals, four PHCs, and eight medical points are located within 1,000 metres of the area slated for evacuation.
• Most attempts to coordinate humanitarian movements to about two-thirds of the Gaza Strip territory designated as “no-go” zones or placed under displacement orders (see above) have been denied, especially for aid delivery which is often blocked. Given restricted access, there are no clear estimates of the number of people who remain in these areas. Humanitarian partners on the ground report that these areas are not empty and include families who may have immediately fled following the issuance of orders but returned when only limited military activities were conducted. Initial information based on recent field visits by aid actors in Gaza, including in central, eastern, and southwest of Gaza city, indicate that despite efforts to scale up response, access to essential services is increasingly difficult due to insecurity and lack of supplies. Additionally, restricted humanitarian movements are hindering critical tasks, such as the delivery of chemicals for desalination plants and picking up commodities at crossings.
• Between 3 and 7 April, out of 36 planned aid movements across the Gaza Strip that were coordinated with the Israeli authorities, 25 were denied, one faced impediments, and 10 were facilitated. Out of 14 planned humanitarian assistance movements in or to northern Gaza that were coordinated with the Israeli authorities, only five were facilitated and nine were denied. These include 12 aid missions that needed to pass through the Israeli-controlled Wadi Gaza area between southern and northern Gaza. Of these, five were facilitated by the Israeli authorities through Al Rashid Road while seven others were denied. In southern Gaza, out of the 22 planned humanitarian assistance movements, five were facilitated, 16 were denied and one faced impediments.

• Between 3 and 7 April, out of 36 planned aid movements across the Gaza Strip that were coordinated with the Israeli authorities, 25 were denied, one faced impediments, and 10 were facilitated. Out of 14 planned humanitarian assistance movements in or to northern Gaza that were coordinated with the Israeli authorities, only five were facilitated and nine were denied. These include 12 aid missions that needed to pass through the Israeli-controlled Wadi Gaza area between southern and northern Gaza. Of these, five were facilitated by the Israeli authorities through Al Rashid Road while seven others were denied. In southern Gaza, out of the 22 planned humanitarian assistance movements, five were facilitated, 16 were denied and one faced impediments.
• On 4 April, the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) expressed alarm at the breakdown of public order in Gaza, with recent allegations of killings and unnecessary or disproportionate use of force in crowd control by the local police. OHCHR stated: “As vital aid becomes scarcer and people become more desperate, our Office has received reports of several incidents alleging the unnecessary or disproportionate use of force by local police against crowds seeking food” as well as reports of “undue restrictions on the freedoms of peaceful assembly and expression, including arbitrary detention, ill-treatment and torture.” OHCHR added: “Israel’s continued attacks on Gaza have served to dismantle and destroy Gaza’s governance and law enforcement structures, contributing to a deterioration of public order that threatens the safety of Palestinians and their access to basic services and life-saving humanitarian aid,” a situation that has been “further exacerbated by Israel’s complete closure of crossings into Gaza, preventing entry of any goods or essential supplies as families struggle to find the basic necessities such as food and water.”
• The health system in Gaza is overwhelmed by the influx of casualties and rapidly depleting essential medicines and supplies due to the blockade on the entry of humanitarian aid supplies into Gaza for over a month. On the occasion of World Health Day, WHO reported that supplies for maternal and child health, including for caesarean sections, anesthesia for delivery and pain management, as well as blood units needed for surgeries and complicated deliveries are critically low. Essential medical equipment, such as portable incubators, ventilators for neonatal intensive care, ultrasound machines, and oxygen pumps were reportedly not allowed entry to Gaza. In addition, 180,000 doses of routine childhood vaccines — enough to fully protect 60,000 children under the age of two — have not been permitted to enter, leaving newborns and young children without the life-saving care they urgently need. In a press conference marking the same occasion, the MoH in Gaza reported that while medical teams and ambulance crews continue to operate under life-threatening conditions to save lives, 37 per cent of medications and 59 per cent of medical supplies are at zero stock. This includes medications for operating rooms, intensive care units, and emergency departments that have been depleted to unprecedented levels, with higher percentages of critical medications being at zero stock, such as 54 per cent of medications for cancer treatment, 40 per cent of those for primary care and 51 per cent of medicines for maternal and child health. Furthermore, the destruction of diagnostic imaging equipment has severely restricted patients’ access to these vital services, while fuel shortages threaten to shut down the hospitals' essential departments that rely on generators, MoH added.
• In Gaza governorate, access to health care facilities is affected by displacement orders and the safety of healthcare workers remains at risk, with at least two reported killed as they left their health facility in Gaza city on 7 April. Twelve out of 17 hospitals are partially functional and 17 out of 41 PHCs are functional, including 13 partially, and there is only one field hospital. Moreover, Health Cluster partners support 23 health facilities in Gaza governorate, including a newly opened, level-2 health centre offering general medical consultations, services for non-communicable diseases, wound care, sexual and reproductive health services, psychosocial support and nutrition services. At Al Shifa Hospital, doctors are being forced to discharge patients early to make room for trauma cases in urgent need of surgery, according to WHO, which is providing technical expertise to strengthen mass casualty management to save lives. A WHO-provided tent with ten inpatient beds is already in place, with plans underway to bring in more tents to expand hospital bed capacity. A new 70-bed surgical and orthopedic wing is also under construction to help absorb the growing caseload.
• Following coordination with Israeli authorities and notwithstanding extremely challenging conditions, on 6 April, WHO reached Al Ahli Hospital in Gaza city, where it had deployed an international orthopedic emergency medical team to address the surge in trauma cases, supporting the replenishment of essential supplies from its dwindling stocks, and improving trauma care pathways to enable patient transfers to Al-Shifa Hospital, also in Gaza city. Due to heavy patient overload, Al Ahli Hospital’s CT scanner — the only one in northern Gaza — has broken down due to sustained overuse, 50 out of 160 blood units were used in one day, and the hospital’s three operating theatres are not enough to meet the demand for surgeries, WHO reported. In one instance, the hospital’s emergency department was pushed to eight times its capacity following an airstrike on a school in the city, receiving over 180 injuries and 52 fatalities in just one night, according to WHO. Referring to this incident, Dr. Khamis Elessi, rehabilitation and pain medicine consultant at the hospital, told WHO that the vast majority of casualties were women and children and stated: “In Gaza city, we need more doctors, more emergency physicians, more vascular surgeons and neurosurgeons. And more efforts to stop this and to open a safe passage for people who want to get treated outside.”

• A significant reduction in water supply through pipelines from Israel, coupled with the lack of power, fuel, spare parts and access, is likely to further jeopardize people’s access to safe drinking water across the Gaza Strip and expose them to conditions that threaten their survival and dignity, according to the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) Cluster. At present, only one of three Mekorot water pipelines from Israel to Gaza is functional—the Bani Suheila connection in Khan Younis—and the main desalination plant in southern Gaza has had an 85 per cent reduction in its water production since early March following power cuts by Israel. The second pipeline in Deir al Balah (Bani Saeed) has been non-functional since January 2025, after sustaining damage, with no permission hitherto granted by Israeli authorities to safely access and repair the line in the “no-go” zone. The third pipeline to northern Gaza (Al Muntar) has stopped functioning since 3 April 2025; the line previously provided nearly 50 per cent of water supply in Gaza and North Gaza governorates.
• UNICEF now estimates that access to drinking water for one million people, including 400,000 children, has dropped from 16 litres per person per day during the ceasefire to just six, warning that if “fuel runs out in the coming weeks, this [the amount] could drop below four liters, forcing families to use unsafe water, increasing the risk of disease outbreaks, particularly among children.” The WASH Cluster is exploring contingency measures, such as scaling up water trucking from private desalination plants and further expanding the use of ground water wells, but serious challenges persist, including the blockade on the entry of essential supplies, including fuel, and shrinking humanitarian space.
• A growing sanitation crisis is having a detrimental impact on Gaza's health care facilities. The WASH Cluster reports that over 250 health care facilities are awaiting essential infection prevention and control supplies, currently held outside the Gaza Strip. These supplies are vital to protect both patients and health workers, especially given the limited capacity of WASH services across health care facilities. In the absence of these supplies, there is an urgent need for prioritization and targeted training to help staff identify the best safety measures with limited resources. This situation is placing an additional burden on Gaza’s already overwhelmed health care workforce, amid an exceptionally serious depletion of essential medical and trauma supplies while hospitals have been inundated with casualties. 
• UNICEF warns that with no aid entering since 2 March, malnutrition, disease and other preventable conditions are expected to surge, increasing the risk of preventable child deaths. In central and southern Gaza, ready-to-use complementary food for infants—critical for healthy growth amid widespread food shortages—has been depleted. Only limited amounts of ready-to-use infant formula (RUIF) remain for 400 children, while nearly 10,000 infants under six months are not exclusively breastfed. UNICEF cautions that without access to RUIF, families may be forced to use alternatives mixed with contaminated water, compounding health risks, and that the lack of food and drinkable water also compromise breastfeeding practices and infant health.  “UNICEF has thousands of pallets of aid waiting to enter the Gaza Strip,” said UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa Edouard Beigbeder. “Most of this aid is lifesaving – yet instead of saving lives, it is sitting in storage. It must be allowed in immediately. This is not a choice or charity; it is an obligation under international law,” he added. Meanwhile, displacement orders and bombardment have forced the closure of 15 per cent of all nutrition sites, interrupting treatment for about 350 acutely malnourished children. Many more are at risk of being denied lifesaving support as nutrition detection and treatment services are disrupted. The Nutrition Cluster reports that operational capacity for nutrition screening has dropped by 30 per cent, reaching only around 58,000 children in March, compared with 83,000 in February.
• A recent assessment conducted by Food Security Sector (FSS) partners reveals an interlinked crisis in agriculture, livestock, and fisheries, marked by input shortages, water scarcity, and widespread damage to livelihoods and infrastructure. Whether due to missing irrigation systems, livestock losses, or destroyed fishing boats, production disruptions are not isolated challenges but symptoms of a broader collapse in access, affordability, and mobility, particularly for vulnerable groups. While limited inputs constrain crop producers, herders face a survival crisis marked by high rates of animal mortality, the destruction of shelters, and potential health risks due to parasite infection among surviving livestock that passes on to people. This is compounded by unexploded ordnance risk and access limitations, which significantly undermine food production. Furthermore, fishers continue to face insecurity at sea and lack of essential equipment. Overall, the assessment finds that physical access challenges and security access constraints shape participation in land, water, or sea activities.
• The escalation of hostilities since October 2023 has triggered a severe environmental crisis in Gaza, with profound impacts on water resources, agriculture, and waste management systems, according to a recent report by the Palestinian Environmental NGOs Network (PENGON). The report highlights that the destruction of critical infrastructure and heavy military vehicle activity have exacerbated long-standing environmental challenges, resulting in widespread pollution, including water pollution, reduced agricultural output, and soil degradation. Warning of severe threats to public health, the report notes that the vast majority of fields once used to grow crops and olive tree orchards have been damaged or destroyed, solid waste management services are on the brink of collapse, and there is widespread environmental contamination by an estimated 50 million tonnes of debris, unrecovered bodies, the open burning of waste and unexploded ordinances. The report calls for urgent, coordinated efforts to rebuild Gaza’s environmental infrastructure and mitigate long-term socio-economic and public health impacts.

1239.

8 april 2025

Readers’ Recommendations 

• Chemical burns, assaults, electric shocks - Gazans tell BBC of torture in Israeli detention (BBC) 

1238.

8 april 2025

Today's headlines

An ode to Rafah, as Israel orders the city to evacuate once again

Last week Israel ordered the evacuation of Rafah, the very place that has been a refuge for millions of Palestinians, including myself. As I read the news, the memories of my displacement to Rafah came flooding back.

1236.

8 april 2025

Today’s meeting between Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu once again exposed the selective morality and dangerous political theater that continues to define the U.S. role in Israel’s ongoing genocide against Palestinians. Trump’s focus on the 25 Israeli hostages, while failing to even mention the thousands of Palestinian hostages (including men, women, and children, many of whom have been imprisoned by the apartheid state without charge for decades) is a shameful display of inhumanity and moral bankruptcy. He couldn’t even bring himself to mention the recent murder of 14-year-old Palestinian-American Amer Rabee, a U.S. citizen from Saddle Brook, New Jersey, who was fatally shot by Israeli forces in the West Bank yesterday. This only proves the administration's disregard and willful erasure of all Palestinian life and suffering, even when American citizens are among the victims.​ 

Trump’s reference to Gaza as a "real estate opportunity" and “free zone” not only dehumanizes Palestinians but dangerously echoes calls for the forced population transfer and the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people. His comments suggest that Gaza was somehow “given away” by Israel in 2005—ignoring that under international law, Gaza remains occupied territory. Israel never left Gaza; it simply turned it into an open-air prison, sealing it under a brutal siege that has lasted nearly two decades. Real peace requires the Israeli government and its allies to put an end to this occupation, not the commodification of Palestinian land or the displacement of its people.

Trump’s description of Gaza as “one of the most dangerous places in the world” is, ironically, the only honest thing he said. Yes, it is one of the most dangerous places on Earth right now. But not because of Palestinians. It’s dangerous because the Israeli government has been actively committing genocide with full U.S. military, financial, and political backing for over a year and a half with no end in sight. The relentless bombardment, suffocating blockade, deliberate starvation, and systematic destruction of hospitals, schools, refugee camps, and all of Gaza’s essential infrastructures are the direct result of Israeli aggression, made possible only by unwavering American complicity.

Trump claimed he would bring peace as president—but what kind of peace is built by bowing to every demand of an apartheid regime and embracing a war criminal currently facing an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC)? What kind of peace ignores the more than 50,000 Palestinians killed (and that’s a conservative estimate), over 80,000 injured, and millions displaced, starved, and traumatized? Peace is obviously not going to be found through genocide nor through the erasure and displacement of Indigenous people.

If Trump, or any U.S. leader, truly wants to bring peace, they must start with one simple reality: Israel must end its occupation. And for that to happen, the United States must demand it by holding Israel accountable and immediately ending all military funding, political cover, and diplomatic protection. President Biden began the dangerous path of isolating the U.S. from the global consensus by backing Israel’s genocide in Gaza in 2023; now Trump is finishing the job, doubling down on that isolation by legitimizing war criminals and parroting apartheid propaganda. Both the U.S. and Israel need to get one thing straight: Palestinian land is NOT for sale, and Palestinian lives are NOT expendable.

AJP Action continues to demand an immediate end to U.S. complicity and a total halt to all military aid to Israel. Anything less keeps our government an active partner in genocide. We demand real accountability, not empty rhetoric or performative meetings that embolden war criminals and further entrench apartheid. 

In solidarity,
Americans for Justice in Palestine Action

1235.

7 april 2025

Tens of thousands took the streets of the nation’s capital a day before Netanyahu’s arrival

In a historic march in Washington, D.C. this weekend, tens of thousands took to the streets in a show of force that defied the fear-mongering and repression of the Trump administration. Demonstrations around the country sent a clear message: Gaza and Palestine will NOT be left alone. The masses are speaking in a clear voice that no matter the consequences, advocates for justice in Palestine will continue to critique Israel and its genocidal policies.

Watch AMP’s Mohamad Habehh on Democracy Now! discussing the protest

Protestors marched from 3rd and Pennsylvania towards the national headquarters of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, which has been abducting international students and throwing them into detention centers in Louisiana and across the country. Many demonstrators held signs demanding the release of Columbia University graduate, Mahmoud Khalil, Tufts graduate student Rumeysa Ozturk, and many others taken by ICE last month.

AMP and 12 other core groups organized the march, with more than 200 groups nationwide endorsing the action.

Relentless attacks against AMP and its leadership will not deter us from continuing on the path towards holding Israel accountable for its crimes and from working to end US support for genocide and ethnic cleansing.

In solidarity,
American Muslims for Palestine (AMP)

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7 april 2025

Another American child has been murdered by settlers, demand Congress end U.S. funding of settler violence, genocide, and apartheid

AJP Action is heartbroken and furious over the killing of 14-year-old Amer Rabee, a Palestinian American from New Jersey, who was shot and killed by an Israeli settler in the occupied West Bank on Sunday, April 6th. Amer traveled to his homeland to visit family and now he won’t return. His death is not an isolated tragedy, but part of a growing, state-sanctioned pattern of settler terror that Palestinians are forced to endure on a daily basis. 

TAKE ACTION! And demand they take immediate action. Let them know that we will not stand by as they’re silent any longer.

Amer is not the first American child killed by Israeli settlers and without an immediate, drastic shift in U.S. policy, he will not be the last. This is part of a horrifying pattern: Palestinian civilians, including children and U.S. citizens, are routinely targeted and killed with impunity by settlers emboldened by the Israeli government. These settlers are backed by a regime that continues to escalate its violence and land theft, shielded from accountability at every single level, including by the U.S.

Every single member of Congress must take a stand. Enough cowardice. Enough excuses.

Take action now!  We cannot stop until Amer’s family sees justice and until no more Palestinian families have to endure this pain.

In solidarity,
Americans for Justice in Palestine Action

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7 april 2025

Readers’ Recommendations

1232.

7 april 2025

Today's headlines

Gaza is a graveyard of the Muslim world’s conscience

Gaza’s blood stains not only the hands of Israel, the U.S., and the West — but also those of 2 billion Muslims who remain silent witnesses.

Mahmoud Khalil’s ‘Letter to Columbia’ from jail

In a scathing letter, Mahmoud Khalil writes from an ICE detention center in Louisiana, blasting Columbia University's role in his abduction and the targeting of other student activists by the Trump administration.

1231.

7 april 2025

Corrigendum
Humanitarian Situation Update #277
Gaza Strip

Please note that we have fixed figures related to the status of notified humanitarian movements in the Gaza Strip between 25 March and 2 April. The correct version is available here, As a rule, we mark any corrections to our reports with asterisks.
 
Thank you for understanding.
 
Best regards,
 
OCHA OPT team

1230.

Yesh Din Volunteers for Human Rights
 

6 april 2025

This is a dark period not only for human rights but also for the organizations working to defend them. As part of the judicial overhaul and the effort to silence us to eliminate civil society in general—and human rights organizations in Israel in particular—the Knesset is advancing two bills:

The first is a bill to impose an 80% tax on donations from foreign governmental entities, which also includes a clause stating that courts will not be obligated to hear petitions submitted by NGOs whose primary funding comes from a foreign governmental entity.

The second is a bill that criminalizes the transfer of information to the International Criminal Court in The Hague, stating that individuals or Israeli organizations that transfer or publish information that may be used by the ICC could face up to five years in prison.

Despite everything, we at Yesh Din continue to persevere. We continue to publish reports and data, collect testimonies, document violence that has become policy, and provide legal assistance to Palestinians in the West Bank whose rights are violated daily.

Your support is what allows us to continue this vital work and to believe in a more just and hopeful future for us al

Yesh Din & Physicians for Human Rights Publish a New Report on Forced Displacement of Palestinian Shepherding Communities in the West Bank

Displaced Communities, Forgotten People is the product of a joint project launched by Yesh Din and Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI). The report addresses the events that led to the forced displacement of hundreds of Palestinian families from their homes in the West Bank. In less than two years, about 100,000 dunams of land east of Allon Road (northeast of Ramallah) have been almost completely emptied of the Palestinians who lived on it for decades.

The Israeli authorities do not recognize these communities and have, for years, harassed and abused their residents. However, the turning point came after settlers established shepherding outposts near the communities they sought to displace. The escalation of violence originating from these outposts over the past two years has created a coercive environment unconducive to life for Palestinian shepherding communities, effectively forcing them out of their homes.

While the State of Israel formally distances itself from the settlers’ acts, claiming the outposts are illegal, in practice, it supports and funds them. Yesh Din described how Israel supports the settler shepherding farms by providing them allocations of pastureland, financial grants, and infrastructure in our 2022 report, Plundered Pastures. It then reaps the benefits of their aggression towards Palestinians, which helps achieve the state’s goals. In this way, Israel consistently and systematically violates the human rights of Palestinian shepherding communities in the West Bank, including the rights to life, personal security, health, freedom of movement, property, livelihood, and dignity.

Displaced Communities, Forgotten People is a case study that focuses on a limited area, but the same Israeli policies and settlement methods are implemented in other parts of the West Bank.

The main conclusion of Displaced Communities, Forgotten People is that Israel is responsible for the commission of the war crime of the forcible transfer of Palestinians in the West Bank. This crime is committed with the state’s support, by its agents or citizens. Moreover, the state’s deep involvement in the commission of these crimes, its practices, its systemic nature, and its replication in various locations, lead to the grim conclusion that in certain parts of the West Bank, the State of Israel is implementing practices of ethnic cleansing.

Data Sheet: Law Enforcement on Israeli Civilians in the West Bank (Settler Violence), 2005-2024

Yesh Din published data on the failure to enforce the law against violent settlers and on the policy that grants impunity to those who harm Palestinians and their property, as it does every year.

The data highlights the lack of deterrence and the lenient approach of Israeli law enforcement authorities toward ideological crimes over the past two decades: most investigation files were closed for reasons indicating negligent and flawed investigations, and only 3% resulted in a conviction. The result is a sense of impunity for offenders and a lack of safety for victims.

At the same time, there has been a sharp decline in Palestinian victims’ trust in Israeli law enforcement: in 2024, 66% of Palestinian victims of settler violence gave up their right to file a police complaint against the Israelis who harmed them.

Settler violence and the policy of non-enforcement against its perpetrators are part of a system designed to expand Israeli control over the West Bank by making Palestinian life unbearable and pushing them off their land. The fact that this systemic failure has continued for at least two decades points to a deliberate policy by the State of Israel—one that normalizes, supports, and benefits from settlers’ ideological violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.

Data Sheet: Law Enforcement Against Israeli Soldiers Suspected of Harming Palestinians and Their Property – Figures for 2018-2022

Does Israel investigate soldiers and commanders suspected of offenses against Palestinians? The data indicates that it doesn’t.

Since 2005, we have been monitoring how the military law enforcement system handles cases of harm caused by soldiers to Palestinians in the occupied territories. This data sheet reveals a grim picture: between 2018 and 2022, 862 complaints were submitted to the military regarding harm caused by soldiers to Palestinians. The vast majority—70%—were closed without any criminal investigation. Of the small number of cases that were investigated, only 13 (5%) led to indictments.

The chance that a complaint about harm caused by an Israeli soldier to a Palestinian in the West Bank will lead to an indictment is just 1.5%—an extremely low figure by any standard. In cases of killings, the indictment rate drops even further: The likelihood that an Israeli soldier will be prosecuted for killing Palestinians in the West Bank stands at just 0.4%.
 

In other words, in most cases, the military law enforcement system avoids investigating or prosecuting soldiers who harm Palestinians, effectively granting them near-total immunity. This is not a system of law enforcement—it is a whitewashing mechanism.

Small But Meaningful Victories

Victory in the struggle to protect the property rights of landowners in Nabi Aner –

Seven years after it was filed, the High Court of Justice has ruled on the petition against the settlers’ invasion of privately owned Palestinian land at the historic site of Nabi Aner. The court ordered the state to demolish the illegal construction built on the site within six months and to restore the area, as much as possible, to its original state before the invasion.

The ruling upholds the right of Palestinians to property and to free access to heritage and recreational sites. This is a just and important victory. After seven years of legal and public struggle, the High Court affirmed what should be obvious: the state is obligated to protect Palestinians’ property rights and allow them to preserve their heritage—even when settlers wish to turn it into a recreational site for themselves.

The justices sharply criticized the state and the State Attorney’s Office for their conduct over the years, which was characterized by repeated attempts to evade commitments made by the state itself to the High Court. The court also criticized the active involvement of the Binyamin settlement Regional Council in funding illegal construction at the site.

The petition was submitted and led by Attorney Shlomi Zachary, together with Attorneys Michal Ziv and Lior Tzur, on behalf of the head of the village council of Ras Karkar, two residents of the village of Deir Ammar, and the human rights organizations Yesh Din and Emek Shaveh.

We, of course, welcome this decision, which can be summed up as “better late than never.” Despite the state authorities doing everything possible to avoid enforcing the law—and although it took years of legal proceedings—the much-needed ruling was finally handed down.

"The groundwork for a fundamental legal and structural shift in Israel’s control over the West Bank was laid immediately after the government’s formation – months before October 7. These steps paved the way for removing barriers to settlement expansion, and their impact has become increasingly evident. With Israeli and global attention focused on the ongoing war, the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, and the fate of the Israeli hostages held by Hamas, the Israeli government has doubled down on its annexation agenda."   

Yesh Din is required by law to make the following statement:
Yesh Din is mostly funded by foreign governmental entities - through grants devoted to the provision of humanitarian assistance and the promotion of human rights. A list of our donors is available on the Israeli Associations Register's website and on Yesh Din's website. Yesh Din is proud to be funded by States that are committed to the rule of law, that believe the occupation is not an internal Israeli matter, and that support the defense of international humanitarian law and human rights.

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6 april 2025

Today's headlines

Trump is playing a dangerous game with Iran

Recent aggressive moves by the Trump administration have clearly been meant to threaten Iran. While this pressure might be an attempt to intimidate Iran into nuclear concessions, the threat of all-out war appears to be growing by the day.

The Jewish community cannot center fears about ‘Jewish safety’ while supporting genocide in Gaza

Because the Jewish community has not shown the minimal moral capacity to call out genocide I cannot take concern around alleged pro-Palestine antisemitism seriously as it appears to just be a strategy to aid and abet Israel’s crimes.

1228.

6 april 2025

My name is Ella Keidar Greenberg. I was raised to be a man and a soldier. At the age of 14, I came out as a trans woman and rejected society’s dictation of gender. Now, at the age of 18, I am refusing to enlist, and rejecting society’s militaristic dictation.

Shortly after coming out, I found the communist manifesto in my grandmother’s library. I spent the next two years reading books about political philosophy and Marxist theory. Through reading, I developed a deeper understanding of the bloody history and present of the place I live in. With the protest movement against the judicial coup, a path manifested for me to convert the frustration I felt into hope and political action.

I quickly joined the struggle against the occupation as an activist and organizer. First in the anti-occupation bloc and the weekly protests in Kaplan Street, and later in the Mesarvot Network, in the Communist Youth Union, in Hadash (DFPE) and in the Communist Party. Since then, activism has turned into the center of my life.

I organized a mass protest against transphobic propaganda, protested with Palestinian activists against land theft as soldiers shot stun grenades and rubber bullets at us, blocked roads, got injured by cops and from violent evictions by border police, organized a mass refusal campaign under Youth Against Dictatorship, did protective presence and joined co-resistance in Masafer Yatta, and now – I am refusing.

Mattan HelmanExecutive Director RefuserSolidarity Network

The main reason for such acts, is that our country is committing a genocide in Gaza. Hundreds of thousands have been killed in bombings, intentional destruction of infrastructure, starvation, and indiscriminate fire. Millions were torn from their homes, and continue to exist in a state of displacement since. This has been the daily reality in Gaza for the past 18 months. All for a war that was supposedly meant to bring the hostages back home, but in practice, abandons them. The war of annihilation has not passed over the West Bank, with escalating settler violence, supported more than ever by the army.

Dozens of villages, ethnically cleansed as if they never even existed, and entire neighborhoods destroyed and depopulated as part of the destructive operation in Jenin and Tulkarm. Now that the government has returned to its campaign of destruction in Gaza, this situation is expected to continue to worsen.

Inside Israel we are witnessing police political persecution of left-wing activists and Palestinians on scales not seen since the period of military rule between 1948-1966, arrests over statements on social media, protests and civil organizing. There is an intentional systematic neglect of Arab society to murderous organized crime, 24 living hostages still waiting to return to their families, a horrific economic crisis that is affecting working people first and foremost, a 65% increase in domestic violence that is tied to the 40% rise in civilian firearms. Additionally, we have seen a surge in violence against the queer community and a simultaneous cut of its governmental budgets, and that same judicial coup we blocked roads against just moments ago, is now being rapidly legislated under our noses.

These are not processes happening separately from the genocide in Gaza. These systems are not just the soldier standing at the checkpoint, the boss that pays too little, or the people outlawing our gender and medical autonomy, but also the education into these institutions, the sum of all social mechanisms that prime us into obedient subjects of the system. This logic is what trans people, like refuseniks, undermine. That’s why we’re so scary, because the existing system and its reproduction is insured by us – the people, staying disciplined and obedient.

But obedience brings us nothing but oblivion. The decision makers of the military and government clarify again and again that they have no interest in the stability of the ceasefire agreement, in our rights, or in the return of the hostages. Their interest in us is limited to our function as canon fodder for the extermination and expansion industry.

Dark regimes and the horrors they enforce don’t collapse by the citizens obeying the law and doing what we’re told, hoping someone upstairs will come to their senses and understand this has to stop. Faced with the reality of mass extermination, of systematic neglect, of trampling on rights, of war – the imperative is refusal. Don’t stay complacent: gather, organize, resist. In 40 years, when our grandchildren ask us what we did during the Gaza genocide, during the collapse of the old order, if we gave up or if we put up a fight, how will you rather answer?

I know what I’ll answer: that I chose to resist, this is why we are refusing.

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5 april 2025

LIVE BLOG: One Million Children Deprived of Aid | New Video: 'Time is Running Out' - Day 537

Shocking Footage Exposes Israeli Assault on Marked Ambulances in Rafah

We rely on your support to keep this vital work going. Stand with us—support independent journalism today.

Resistance is Existence: On the Legal Right of Resistance in All of Its Many Forms

THE FLOODGATE PODCAST

Roger Waters EXCLUSIVE: "We are RIGHT! Genocide is WRONG!"

 SUPPORT THE PALESTINE CHRONICLE

1226.

5 april 2025

Trump is trying to silence Palestine solidarity.

From student activists to independent journalists, the loudest voices for justice are under attack. At Mondoweiss, we won’t back down—and we know you won’t either.

Colonial violence is on display from Gaza to U.S. universities

As chaos unfolds in the U.S. under the Trump administration's crackdown on dissent, Israel is taking full advantage—resuming its genocidal attacks on Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. While the world looks the other way.

While Trump expands his war on student protesters and free speech, Israeli forces have escalated military assaults and deepened the siege. In Gaza, Tareq Qassam Muaddi reminded us that Palestinians are not simply victims but a people whose voices continue to resist dehumanization—even when the world refuses to listen.

Meanwhile, U.S. institutions—from Congress to elite universities—are enabling and echoing this violence. Michael Arria reported on the Senate's rejection of Senator Bernie Sanders's attempt to block weapons sales to Israel. At Columbia, Tamara Turki documented how ICE and NYPD are targeting student activists. "Columbia is willing to give the Trump administration whatever it wants," one student told us. "But that doesn't mean we shouldn't keep pushing too." And in Louisiana, Mahmoud Khalil remains locked in ICE detention, where supporters say his case is a bellwether for political repression to come.

This is why Mondoweiss exists: to cover the full scope of Israel's violence and to show how global systems—from the U.S. to Europe to China—help make it possible. This week's stories examine how that power operates in plain sight. Craig Mokhiber writes that U.S. attacks on Yemen are designed to protect Israeli impunity. Mjriam Abu Samra and Sara Troian expose how Palestine isn't an exception to the liberal global order—it's the rule. And Susan Abulhawa torches PEN America's complicity in a scathing open letter that everyone should read.

Thanks to you, we're able to publish this work. This month, we're in the middle of our Spring Fundraising Campaign. Our goal is to raise $95,000 to support not only our ongoing coverage but also our ambitious growth plans to expand the impact of our journalism.

‘The dam has been broken’: Thousands expected in DC for Palestine march

On April 5, thousands are gathering in Washington D.C. to stand up against the U.S.’s continued support for the genocide in Gaza and the Trump administration’s wave of domestic suppression.

Catch-up

= Qassam Muaddi: Sometimes I wonder if journalism is as pointless as politics. But when I speak to families in Gaza, I am reminded that in the face of global indifference, there is a duty, even if just to my own conscience, to try and change this horrible reality.

= The Senate has rejected a pair of resolutions from Senator Bernie Sanders aimed at blocking weapon sales to Israel.

= The colonization of Palestine is not an anomaly in the liberal global order but its most glaring indictment. It exposes the hypocrisy of an international system that decries colonialism while institutionalizing and legitimizing it.

= Yemen's Red Sea blockade in defense of Palestinians is squarely supported by international law. But the country is being ruthlessly bombed by the U.S. to ensure Israeli impunity for its continued siege and genocide in Gaza.

= Rather than silence dissent, the government's actions have only emboldened voices demanding that basic rights be respected here, in Palestine, and beyond,

= Columbia students are banding together as ICE and the NYPD target Palestine activism. "[Columbia] is willing to give the Trump administration whatever it wants," one student tells Mondoweiss. "But that doesn't mean we shouldn't keep pushing too."

= A group of Civil Defense and Palestinian Red Crescent crews in Gaza disappeared when they went to Rafah on a rescue mission. A week later, the bodies of 14 first responders were found dead and buried in the sand by the Israeli army.

= For Palestinians in Gaza, this Eid was supposed to be a symbol of resilience and hope after months of war. But Israel's renewed attack, which broke the ceasefire, has crushed even our smallest dreams.

= We had just begun rebuilding our lives when Israel shattered the Gaza ceasefire. Now we are once again on the edge of death and I can only ask, Why are we not allowed to survive?

= Qassam Muaddi: The voices of Palestinians who protested against Hamas in Gaza are not only a reminder of the unbearable suffering that has been inflicted upon them but also of the fact that those subjected to that suffering are an entire people and not Hamas.

1225.

5 april 2025

Today's headlines

Weeks after returning to their homes, Gaza City residents are being forced to evacuate under Israeli fire – again

Tareq S. Hajjaj

Israel bombed three schools-turned-shelters, intensifying attacks across Gaza City and ordering residents to evacuate. Eyewitnesses report that the Israeli army is sending booby-trapped vehicles into neighborhoods and detonating them remotely.

Netanyahu is using the war on Gaza to consolidate power

Qassam Muaddi

Netanyahu is replacing officials in key state positions with his own loyalists in a bid to consolidate power — and he is using the escalating war on Gaza to do it.

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5 april 2025

In recent weeks, the Trump administration has targeted student protesters over their support for Palestine. Some have fled the country to avoid arrest. Others remain jailed in detention centers. Still, others continue to organize for Palestine despite the risks.

Trump has intensified the war on Palestine solidarity—and we’re fighting back.

It’s the result of years of coordination by pro-Israel lobbying groups and lawmakers. It didn’t begin with Trump, Biden, or October 7. And it won’t end unless we expose it—and resist it.

1223.

4 april 2025

The Palestine Chronicle Newsletter | Apr 4, 2025 - PalestineChronicle.com

 LIVE BLOG: Massacres Continue in Gaza | Hamas Leader Assassinated in Sidon – Day 536

A new investigation by The Intercept has revealed that the pro-Israel group Canary Mission, known for targeting pro-Palestinian activists on university campuses, received $100,000 in 2023 from a foundation linked to a University of Pennsylvania trustee’s family.

The report also noted that Canary Mission’s dossiers are reportedly being used by US immigration authorities to monitor and target pro-Palestine activists.

Gaza’s Endless Night: ‘We Strive for a Chance to Heal’

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4 april 2025

Gaza Humanitarian Response Update

A “closed until further notice” sign hung outside a bakery supported by the World Food Programme in the Gaza Strip. Photo by WFP

Food Security Sector (FSS)

Response

• As of 3 April, after more than four weeks of no aid entering Gaza, almost all flour distributions have been suspended, and all 25 UN-supported bakeries have been forced to close, due to depletion of cooking gas and flour stocks. The last 19 bakeries to close were 10 in central and southern Gaza which shut down on 31 March and nine in northern Gaza which shut down on 1 April. These bakeries had scaled up production by more than 20 per cent for a week – from 160,000 to 193,000 bundles per day – to help offset shortages after the closure of six others (five in Khan Younis and one Deir al Balah) on 7 and 8 March due to a lack of cooking gas. At the same time, retailers no longer had bread to sell in shops. Right before the shutdown of subsidized bakeries, FSS partners have observed that some bread is being resold on the parallel market for 30 to 35 NIS (about US$8 to $9.5) per a two-kilogramme bundle. This is 15 to 17 times the official price and significantly higher than the previous week's observed market price of 15 to 20 NIS per bundle.
• Food parcel distributions at reduced rations will end soon as stocks are being depleted. More than one million people were left without food parcels in March, compared with almost no one left out during the first 42 days of ceasefire.
• Cooked meal provision remains a crucial lifeline for families as food stocks dwindle and cooking gas remains scarce and, where available, sold at exorbitant prices. As of 26 March, more than 900,000 cooked meals were being prepared daily in over 170 kitchens. Since the escalation of hostilities on 18 March, and as of 3 April, more than 15 kitchens were either closed or forced to relocate to sustain meal preparation and distribution. FSS partners are prioritizing meal provisions in Al Mawassi, Khan Younis, following recent waves of forced displacement from Rafah and eastern Khan Younis. However, FSS warns that the remaining community kitchens are at risk of closure as they face rapidly depleting food supplies and cooking fuel shortages.

Challenges

• Since 18 March, escalated hostilities and renewed displacement orders have once again forced people to relocate. FSS partners report that internally displaced persons (IDPs) have been compelled to abandon their food supplies, losing the emergency stocks that they had managed to secure during the ceasefire. With the full blockade on the entry of all aid and commercial goods since 2 March, food security is declining. The previous Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis for Gaza showed that food security and malnutrition can deteriorate, and also recover, swiftly in response to the amount of food supplies that are permitted to enter the Gaza Strip and distributed. 
• As of 31 March, food security partners have limited humanitarian food commodities remaining in main warehouses in the Gaza Strip. Meanwhile, over 89,000 metric tons (MT) of food commodities, sufficient for one to two months, remain stranded outside of Gaza.
• The escalation of hostilities on 18 March, combined with the full closure of all crossings for cargo since 2 March, has resulted in severe market disruptions. Market monitoring for the second half of March indicates that shops have, on average, limited stocks remaining, with key food items, including potatoes, onions, eggs and frozen meat, either scarce or unavailable. Some retailers have begun to ration items sold to customers, while prices continue to rise.
• Energy prices have surged, with cooking gas prices increasing by 4,000 per cent compared with pre-October 2023 levels and 600 per cent compared with prices during the February ceasefire. This has forced many households to resort to burning waste and wood as alternative cooking fuels, posing serious health and environmental risks.
• Cash liquidity shortages remain a major challenge for families wishing to purchase essential goods and for shop owners who need to replenish their stocks. Insufficient access to financial services is also hampering daily operations of FSS partners, including the scale-up of cash and voucher assistance.
• The lack of safe access for farmers, breeders, and fishers to their lands, livestock and the sea is hampering the resumption of agricultural activities and restoration of the food supply chain. The FSS stresses the urgent need to resume the import of agricultural and fish production inputs and tools, ensure the removal of hazardous materials, including explosive ordnance, and grant safe access to fishers to fishing waters without fear of harm.

Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)

Response

• On 28 March, the findings of an assessment conducted by the WASH Cluster in January, prior to the breakdown of the ceasefire, indicated improvements in water and sanitation services compared with the August 2024 assessment. For example, one third of households had access to less than 15 litres per person per day in January 2025, compared with half of the population in August 2024. Yet, 38 per cent cited safety concerns associated with overcrowding and competition when collecting water from collection points. Furthermore, despite some improvements during the ceasefire, public health risks persisted with half of the population having limited, unimproved or no latrines and three quarters reported being exposed to at least one environmental health risk, such as rodents and pests, stagnant water, piles of solid waste, and sewage.
• Between 16 and 28 March, the Palestinian Water Authority (PWA) and Coastal Municipalities Water Utility (CMWU) reported a daily average of 126,224 cubic metres of water produced across the Gaza Strip. About 28 per cent (35,100 cubic metres) of drinking water was produced by one operational seawater desalination plant or supplied through two of the three Mekorot supply lines from Israel. The remaining 72 per cent (91,124 cubic metres) was produced by municipal groundwater wells, which prior to October 2023, accounted for 80 per cent of the water supply.  Despite treatment efforts, water from wells has high levels of salinity and nitrate, typically exceeding the drinking water benchmarks issued by the World Health Organization (WHO). As a result, it is only fit for domestic and hygiene use.
• Deir al Balah is facing an acute shortage of drinking water. Since early March, Israeli authorities had cut off the electricity supply to the main desalination unit, after reconnecting it to the electricity grid in November 2024. A second plant was out of service due to a technical fault, which was only repaired on 30 March.  Meanwhile, the Mekerot pipeline from Israel is damaged in the “no go” zone along the Israeli perimeter fence around Gaza. Water is distributed through piped networks – where losses are estimated at over 50 per cent and fluctuate frequently due to ongoing damage from bombardment and limited repairs – as well as transported through trucked deliveries and direct collection at production sites.
• During the reporting period, WASH Cluster partners continued to carry out essential interventions across the Gaza Strip, including water trucking, distribution of hygiene supplies, waste collection and installation of latrines. Where access and availability of material allowed, partners also carried out ad-hoc repairs of water and sewage networks. Governorate-level response includes:
  • In Rafah, 12 partners reported trucking a total of 703 cubic metres of drinking water to IDPs across 61 locations. Currently, one municipal water desalination plant is operational to address critical shortages caused by extensive damage to water facilities and restricted access to water infrastructure located in the "no-go" zones. 
  • In Khan Younis, 18 partners reported trucking 2,611 cubic metres of drinking water and 4,363 cubic metres of domestic water to 332 locations, including displacement sites, schools-turned shelters, and humanitarian service delivery points. Partners also distributed 500 hygiene supplies.
  • In Deir al Balah, 17 partners reported trucking 1,514 cubic metres of drinking water and 2,502 cubic metres of domestic water to 188 locations, including displacement sites, schools-turned shelters, health-care facilities and humanitarian service delivery points.   Partners also distributed 1,800 hygiene supplies.
  • In Gaza governorate, 22 partners reported trucking 2,873 cubic metres of drinking water and 1,298 cubic metres of domestic water to 504 locations, including displacement sites, schools-turned shelters, and humanitarian service delivery points. Partners also distributed 1,200 hygiene supplies.
  • In North Gaza governorate, 15 partners reported trucking 1,239 cubic metres of drinking water and 5,160 cubic metres of domestic water to 218 locations, including displacement sites. Partners also distributed 700 hygiene supplies.
• As of 29 March, WASH Cluster partners reported that over 1,294 water collection points are operational across the Gaza Strip. More than 95 per cent of these points support water trucking activities, which deliver a daily average of 9,206 cubic metres of drinking water and 13,383 cubic metres of domestic water.

Challenges

• Since 18 March, a new wave of Israeli military activity and forced displacement has limited the ability of WASH partners to provide services and to repair damaged facilities and networks. Recent displacement orders have rendered large parts of Gaza unsafe to access, including the entirety of Rafah.
• On 23 March, an attack on a clearly marked sewage truck in Abasan Al Kabira killed three sanitation municipal staff, underscoring the severe risks faced by WASH partners.
• In Deir al Balah, there is a continued, sizeable deficit of drinking water, including due to lack of electricity required to operate the UNICEF-supported Southern Gaza desalination plant; a technical malfunction of the governorate’s desalination plant was repaired on 30 March, and the lack of permission from Israeli authorities since January to safely access and repair the Mekerot Bani Said water line which is located in a “no-go” zone. To compensate for the low levels of water availability, the CMWU is increasing the water production from groundwater wells, and domestic water trucking agencies are assisting affected communities.
• The blocked entry of all humanitarian aid is impeding water, sewage and solid waste management, exacerbating public health risks. For example, of the 20 solid waste trucks operated by the Joint Service Council in southern Gaza, only six are currently operational and five could be operated if the import of tires were to be allowed. Other essential items that need to be brought into Gaza include generators, spare parts, water production equipment, chemicals, laboratory equipment and construction materials.

Health

Response

• On 18 March, the trauma referral system was activated across the Gaza Strip. During the reporting period, more than half of the hospitals receiving trauma cases reported a bed occupancy rate exceeding 80 per cent. The length of hospital stays for trauma patients ranged from three to eight weeks, depending on the severity of their injuries. On 23 March, a strike on the surgical unit of Nasser Hospital killed two patients, injured eight, and destroyed 35 in-patient beds. On the same day, Nasser Hospital reported that the bed occupancy rate was 95 per cent.
• During the reporting period, 22 hospitals and five field hospitals remained partially functional, while four field hospitals are fully functional.
• On 28 March, WHO provided medical support to the national EMT working in the emergency department (ED) of Al-Shifa medical complex, including to help them review the mass casualty management plan. Since January 2025, the ED has been receiving an average of 400 patients per day, prompting an expansion of the hospital's bed capacity to accommodate the surge in trauma cases. On 28 March, one international specialized care team was deployed to support the intensive care unit (ICU) and hemodialysis services.
• Additionally, during the reporting period, efforts were underway by an international NGO to support the maternity building, with services expected to commence in early April. On 17 March, an oxygen generating plant – salvaged from the non-functional Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital just days before the facility was attacked – was installed at Al-Shifa. However, the hospital continues to face critical shortages of medical equipment for the ICU and specialized surgical supplies.
• Al Wafaa Rehabilitation Hospital in Gaza city, the only operational rehabilitation facility in the Gaza Strip, is working to increase in-patient rehabilitation bed capacity. However, the facility is in an area that was recently placed under a displacement order, rendering the continuity of its services uncertain.
• Daily medical evacuations through the Rafah Crossing have been halted. Between 16 and 29 March, four medical evacuations were carried out through Kerem Shalom Crossing, facilitating the transfer of 154 patients and 234 companions to various receiving countries, including Egypt, France, Italy, Norway, Romania, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Challenges

• Medical and humanitarian staff in Gaza continue to operate under extremely precarious conditions, including coming under attack.  On 30 March, a complex, week-long rescue operation concluded with the recovery of the bodies of eight team members from the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS), six from the Palestinian Civil Defense (PCD) and one from the United Nations. Their co-workers found them buried in the Tal As Sultan area of Rafah, in southern Gaza. The available information indicates that the first team was killed by Israeli forces on 23 March, and that other emergency and aid crews were struck one after another over several hours as they searched for their missing colleagues. They were buried under the sand, alongside their wrecked emergency vehicles – clearly marked ambulances, a fire truck and a UN car.
• A sharp increase in trauma patients has placed Gaza's health-care system under immense strain, amid an urgent need to restock trauma supplies, including fluids, antibiotics, external fixators and blood units. Between 18 and 31 March 2025, the Ministry of Health (MoH) reported 1,001 fatalities and 2,359 injuries. At the same time, the ongoing hostilities, combined with the needs of people already undergoing reconstruction and definitive care operations, have made the existing supplies of anesthesia medications in Gaza insufficient to meet the growing demand, including for surgery, labour and delivery, pain management, and ICU care.
• During the reporting period, with the intensification of hostilities, several health facilities have reported suspending services in areas placed under displacement orders. For example, Sheikh Hamad Hospital, a specialized rehabilitation facility in Gaza governorate, and UNRWA’s primary health-care centre that used to provide rehabilitation services in Rafah, reportedly suspended services due to being in areas slated for evacuation.
• The full closure of border crossings for the entry of aid and other critical supplies has had a detrimental impact on the availability of essential medicines for managing trauma cases, safe labour and delivery, non-communicable diseases (NCDs), and surgical interventions. Additionally, there is a critical shortage of blood units, external fixators, and medical equipment, including laboratory tools, X-ray machines, oxygen plants, and generators for energy supply to health facilities. Spare parts for urgent repairs of both ambulances and generators along with fuel (benzene) for ambulances are also in short supply.
• Restrictions on the movement of supplies between southern and northern Gaza via the “Netzarim corridor,” is limiting the ability to urgently replenish health facilities in northern Gaza with available medical supplies.

Nutrition

Response

• Nutrition Cluster partners have continued screening children and pregnant and breastfeeding women (PBW) for malnutrition where possible. No data is yet available for the reporting period. However, in the first two weeks of March, nearly 50,000 children under five years of age were screened, with over 1,200 cases of acute malnutrition identified, including 160 with Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM). During same period, 15,000 PWB were screened and roughly 1,500 women received one-to-one counselling on breastfeeding and support for infant and young child feeding.
• During the reporting period, the distribution of supplies continued, but at a lower scale due to operational challenges, including dwindling stocks that entered before the closure of crossings by Israeli authorities on 2 March. Between 1 and 25 March, about 32,900 children and 4,200 PBW have received lipid-based nutrient supplements (LNS-MQ or LNS-SQ), while about 7,800 children received ready-to-use complementary food. This is compared with 93,117 children and 33,000 PBW who received LNS and 16,408 who received ready-to-use complementary food (RUCF) in February during the ceasefire. 

Challenges 

• The escalation of hostilities since 18 March has severely disrupted the provision of nutrition services. As of 29 March, at least 21 nutrition treatment sites, representing 15 per cent of all treatment sites, have closed due to damage, security concerns, or because they were in areas with displacement orders. As a result, about 350 acutely malnourished children have been deprived of their life-saving treatment at these sites.
• Depleted food supplies, soaring prices, lack of cooking fuel, and deteriorating water and sanitation conditions are reducing food intake, increasing the risk of food and water-borne diseases and worsening nutrition—reversing the progress observed during the first 42 days of the ceasefire. This is also placing an additional strain on nutrition programmes, as demand for the remaining supplies rises while replenishment remains impossible due to the halt in the entry of supplies supply entry. At the same time, rising insecurity, the issuance of displacement orders, and movement restrictions have nutrition services across Gaza.
• The SMART survey, initially set to be launched by mid-March, has been postponed due to the recent escalation of hostilities, widespread displacement, and security concerns, making it unfeasible to conduct a representative field survey. While partners continue to screen children for acute malnutrition (wasting), the survey's suspension limits the ability to collect data on other forms of malnutrition, including stunting (chronic malnutrition), thereby limiting the ability to identify malnutrition cases that require urgent treatment.

Protection

Response

• During the reporting period, Mine Action (MA) actors:
  • Provided 151 Explosive Ordnance Risk Education (EORE) sessions, including conflict preparedness and protection, promoting safe behavior among over 3,800 women, girls, men and boys.
  • Recorded one explosive ordnance (EO) incident, resulting in one fatality and five injuries.
  • Conducted 18 Explosive Hazard Assessments (EHAs) in support of humanitarian operations, including in collective shelters, medical facilities, and schools.
  • Facilitated two inter-cluster missions in support of the UN Department of Safety and Security on 16 and 27 March.
• During the reporting period, Child Protection (CP) actors:
  • Updated the urgent referral pathway for children at serious risk of harm or death in response to the increasing number of high-risk, life-threatening cases. Orientations for CP actors on the safe identification and referral of cases are ongoing.
  • Resumed awareness-raising activities, where feasible and safe, to prevent and mitigate family separation risks. Distributed child identification bracelets for children under five to prevent family separation.
  • UNICEF resumed family reunification activities for children whose parents were killed or were forcibly separated from their parents or other caregivers, including for cases where high level coordination and safe transport is required to reunite children with their families.
• During the reporting period, actors addressing gender-based violence (GBV):
  • Updated the GBV referral pathway to reflect changes in service provider availability.
  • During the reporting period, three out of the 17 Women and Girl Safe Spaces (WGSS) in Gaza had to close due to security concerns, damage, or being in areas under displacement orders, including one in Beit Hanoun, one in North Rafah and one in Jabalya. The remaining 14 WGSS are partially operational, providing support only to complex GBV cases through remote case management. Two WGSS have been able to conduct basic community outreach, focusing on referring people to places where they can seek help for GBV.
  • Case management remains available only for high-risk cases, with more than 600 complex GBV cases currently being supported by GBV partners. However, the total number of GBV survivors in Gaza is estimated to be much higher.
  • Distributed at least 750 hygiene kits and 800 dignity kits, giving priority to newly displaced women, who were displaced without being able to carry any personal items.
• Under the Housing Land and Property (HLP) Technical Working Group (TWG), a guidance note was finalized for humanitarian aid workers negotiating with landowners the stay of IDPs on private land in Gaza. Moreover, an online course on HLP and debris management in Gaza was published, along with a one-pager on mainstreaming HLP rights into debris management efforts. During the reporting period, HLP actors continued to assess the status of land records and coordinate with relevant actors, such as municipalities and land authorities in Gaza.
• Between 8 and 20 March, UNRWA protection teams continued assessing and addressing the risks and needs of displaced people across the Gaza Strip, identifying vulnerable people and facilitating their referral to specialized services. During this period, 28 new critical child protection cases were identified and supported. Protection monitoring was conducted at 36 shelters and IDP sites, alongside 24 key informant interviews. Over 60 awareness-raising sessions on child protection, GBV and Prevention of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) were conducted, reaching more than 1,100 women, girls, men and boys.

Challenges  

• The recent escalation of hostilities, ongoing bombardment, displacement orders and the complete halt on the entry of supplies into the Gaza Strip since 2 March have worsened protection risks for Gaza’s civilian population, including its one million children, who are at risk of family separation, psychological distress and profound and long-term mental health impact. These developments have also severely affected partners’ ability to address protection risks and needs of vulnerable people, significantly disrupting protection services. Several protection partners have also had staff forcibly displaced, further limiting service delivery and response capacity.
• On 27 March, remaining UNRWA international staff left the Gaza Strip. Due to the implementation of the ban from the State of Israel on UNRWA via the Knesset bill, international UNRWA staff are now banned from entering the Gaza Strip. Meanwhile, UNRWA’s Palestinian local staff in Gaza continue to provide services and assistance in Gaza to people who need it most.

Education

Response

• During the reporting period, approximately 30 temporary learning spaces (TLS) – out of 374 TLSs that had to shut down their activities following the escalation of hostilities on 18 March – have reopened, serving about 6,000 learners. These TLSs are primarily in Gaza city, Deir al Balah and western Khan Younis. While TLSs continue to provide children with access to some form of learning, they also prioritize mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) and structured recreational activities to help mitigate the effects of trauma. This focus is particularly critical given children's ongoing exposure to cyclical traumatic events, including continuous bombardment and forced displacement.
• Members of the Education Cluster are prioritizing the delivery of EORE sessions to children, including in areas outside of learning spaces. These initiatives aim to raise awareness and reduce the risk of injury or death caused by EO.

Challenges

• The escalation of hostilities has jeopardized the short-lived efforts to restore in-person learning activities that had only recently resumed during the ceasefire.
  • At least eight functional school structures and 10 TLSs, serving over 10,000 children, have been forced to close due to displacement orders. An additional 155 TLS have suspended operations, bringing the total number of TLS that were forced to shut down their activities to about 374.
  • The Ministry of Education was forced to close all 186 government schools, which were operational as of 17 March in Deir al Balah, Rafah and Khan Younis governorates, due to the escalation of hostilities and widespread insecurity; this has deprived more than 132,000 learners of essential services, including MHPSS, social-emotional learning, EORE, and structured recreational activities. Of these, 28 schools have once again been used as IDP shelters.
• Since the escalation of hostilities on 18 March, three schools have been reported damaged, adding to the widespread destruction of education infrastructure. Continued attacks that hit schools exacerbate safety concerns, further discouraging their use for learning.

Site Management Cluster (SMC)

Response

• Following the escalation of hostilities on 18 March, the Site Management Cluster has been monitoring population movements across Gaza to inform response planning and coordination. Between 18 and 29 March, five Population Movement Monitoring Flash Updates were published, indicating that over 183,000 people were newly displaced across the Gaza Strip. Given this movement, Site Management partners have reported that at least 79 sites have received IDPs during the reporting period. Progress was made on establishing a community-led reporting system that will enable site focal points within the communities to update the site demographics whenever there are new arrivals or departures. Once activated, this system will facilitate the collection of more systematic, real-time data on site populations, and ensure a more timely and well-informed response.
• One Site Management partner is working to re-establish a reception point, ready to support vulnerable people in case of significant population movements. This reception point will provide limited food, water and other essential services to support people during their displacement. This model could be replicated in other areas across Gaza.

Challenges

• Access constraints and widespread insecurity have resulted in incomplete displacement data and reliance on a combination of social media monitoring, remote partner updates, and communications with key informants. Actual displacement figures are likely higher than what is currently reported as estimates.
• There have been reports of skin diseases among IDPs at some displacement sites in Al Mawasi area in western Khan Younis. With limited access to water and sanitation, there are concerns that these cases may worsen significantly and potentially spread to other displacement sites.

Shelter

Response

• During the reporting period, Shelter Cluster partners continued to deliver shelter and non-food items from available stocks to the most vulnerable households across the Gaza Strip. Between 15 and 31 March, Shelter Cluster partners distributed roughly 7,100 blankets, 8,200 clothing kits, 1,300 pillows, 1,800 mats, 4,600 mattresses, 40,700 kitchen sets, and 3,500 torches (searchlights) to increase safety and accessibility. Most distributions took place before the escalation of hostilities on 18 March. Since then, partners have mainly focused on completing ongoing distributions and responding to referrals from other clusters, but their response capacity has been limited due to the depletion of stocks, particularly in the South.
• During the reporting period, Shelter Cluster partners reached more than 18,800 people with tarpaulins and sealing-off kits and distributed 1,240 tents across the Gaza Strip. These figures only relate to shelter materials provided or facilitated through UN Coordination.

Challenges

• Following the escalation of hostilities on 18 March, most partners suspended their activities for one or two days. While some resumed operations, many partners face challenges due to widespread insecurity.
• Shelter and non-food stocks are reaching critical levels, particularly in central and southern Gaza, while movement between northern and southern Gaza is limited. As of 31 March, only a limited number of tents remain in stock in Gaza strip, mostly in warehouses in Gaza city, while very few are in central and southern Gaza. Moreover, approximately 40 per cent of all the available stock in central and southern Gaza belongs to partners who have had to suspend activities. As a result, response is extremely difficult particularly where the needs are high, given the mass displacement from Rafah and eastern Khan Younis. The Shelter Cluster has sought Israeli authorities’ facilitation of tent transfers from northern to southern Gaza to address urgent needs and is still awaiting response.
• Partners’ staff capacity has been significantly affected by insecurity and issuance of displacement orders, with many staff members themselves displaced.
• Interrupted internet access has hindered operations, limiting reporting to updates communicated by phone and resulting in information gaps.

Logistics

Response

• The Logistics Cluster launched a fleet capacity assessment survey on 25 March to collect data on the overall fuel requirements and types of fuel needed by partners operating in Gaza, to identify critical gaps.

Challenges

• For the fourth week in a row, all crossings into Gaza are closed to humanitarian aid and other essential goods. In Jordan, warehouses are full, and in Egypt, the number of UN/INGO trucks waiting to be dispatched has increased by 50 per cent, with about 5,500 truckloads of cargo in partners’ pipelines across all the corridors waiting to be dispatched to Gaza. This situation is leading to substantial additional costs for the Logistics Cluster partners.
• Two of the three Logistics Cluster warehouses in northern Gaza are near areas recently placed under active displacement orders. As of 1 April, the third warehouse in northern Gaza remains accessible. However, there is currently no more stock stored in any Logistic Cluster warehouse in Gaza, as all cargo has been dispatched to partners for their onward transport, storage or distribution, while no new cargo is arriving through the crossings.
• Partners in Gaza are facing fuel shortages that are restricting transport and access to essential power supplies from generators. This situation is further exacerbated by the near-total unavailability of gasoline, hindering humanitarian response efforts.

Emergency Telecommunications (ETC)

Response

• For more information on ETC activities, please visit:Palestine: Conflict | Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC) (etcluster.org).

Challenges

• Telecommunications and internet services across Gaza remain severely limited due to extensive damage to the infrastructure caused by intensified hostilities, compounded by a lack of equipment for repairs and maintenance. Only limited fuel reserves are available to sustain the operation of generators and other critical infrastructure.
• ETC partners report that telecommunications equipment has been damaged or destroyed during the escalating hostilities since 18 March in both northern and southern Gaza, with Rafah being one of the most affected areas. At the same time, the halt in the entry of all supplies, including humanitarian aid and other critical goods, has severely restricted the ability to respond to urgent needs and is critically hindering ETC's ability to deliver its planned services in Gaza.
• Insufficient funding has limited the Cluster's capacity to address immediate critical communication needs for humanitarian responders in Gaza. The Cluster continues to appeal to potential donors for funding.

1221.

4 april 2025

Today's headlines

Senate rejects Sanders effort to block Israeli weapons sale as war on Gaza widens

The Senate has rejected a pair of resolutions from Senator Bernie Sanders aimed at blocking weapon sales to Israel.

‘The dam has been broken’: Thousands expected in DC for Palestine march

On April 5, thousands are gathering in Washington D.C. to stand up against the U.S.'s continued support for the genocide in Gaza and the Trump administration's wave of domestic suppression.

1220.

4 april 2025

Humanitarian Situation Update #277
Gaza Strip

"They shot at us. Some were injured and screaming, but I couldn't look back out of fear." A Palestinian who fled Rafah under fire. Photo by OCHA/Olga Cherevko

Key Highlights

• Mass casualty incidents continue, including at least two – on 2 and 3 April – with dozens of reported casualties at shelters hosting displaced people.
• Sixty-five per cent of the Gaza Strip’s territory is within 'no-go' areas, under active displacement orders, or both. Over 280,000 people have been displaced in the past two weeks.
• The number of aid workers killed since October 2023 rises to 409.
• Gaza faces renewed risk of hunger and malnutrition as the full cargo blockade, now entering the second month, almost halts all flour distribution and shuts all subsidized bakeries.
• Children in Gaza bear the brunt of violence and displacement, which heighten the risk of family separation.

Humanitarian Developments

• Since 18 March, and for more than two weeks, Israeli forces have escalated bombardment from the air, land and sea across the Gaza Strip and expanded ground operations, resulting in hundreds of casualties, destruction of civilian infrastructure, and large-scale displacement. Humanitarian operations have been stifled by a combination of expanded military activity, the Israeli government’s blockade on the entry of humanitarian aid and commercial supplies for more than a month, increased insecurity affecting humanitarian workers, and severe movement restrictions within Gaza. Israeli authorities now require the UN and its partners to coordinate movements to access about 65 per cent of the Gaza Strip. This includes areas designated as ‘no-go’ zones along the Gaza perimeter or along Wadi Gaza where Israeli forces have re-deployed since 20 March as well as locations under displacement orders. Over 280,000 people are estimated to have been displaced in the last two weeks, including about 100,000 people from Rafah over the past several days, according to the Site Management Cluster (SMC). The Deputy Spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Jens Lærke, said that what we are witnessing in Gaza is “a callous disregard for human life and dignity,” adding that “the acts of war that we see bear the hallmarks of atrocity crimes.”
• In a press briefing on 2 April, the acting Head of Office for OCHA in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT), Jonathan Whittall, described the situation in Gaza, including a recent mission to Rafah that uncovered a mass grave of medical and emergency workers who were killed while trying to save lives (more information below), as “a war without limits,” that “defies decency, humanity and … the law”. He said that “Gaza has become a death trap,” where 2.1 million people are “trapped, bombed and starved.” In the past two weeks alone, he added, UN premises have been shelled by tank fire, killing one UN staff member; international aid compounds and hospitals have been hit; municipal workers have been killed in humanitarian-donated trucks; people have been bombed at food distribution points; humanitarian warehouses have been damaged in strikes; and hospitals have been overflowing with mass casualties. Emphasizing that humanitarian aid cannot compensate for the political failures in Gaza, Whittall stated: “As humanitarians … we cannot accept that Palestinian civilians are dehumanized to the point of being somehow unworthy of survival … [and] people’s survival is dependent on an aid system that itself is under attack.”
• According to the Ministry of Health (MoH) in Gaza, between 25 March and 3 April, as of noon, 379 Palestinians were killed and 1,072 were injured. Many bodies remain under the rubble of destroyed structures, according to MoH. Since 19 January, when the first phase of the ceasefire took effect, and as of 3 April, a total of 900 bodies were retrieved from across the Gaza Strip, the MoH reported. Since 7 October 2023 and as of 3 April 2025, the MoH in Gaza reported that at least 50,523 Palestinians have been killed and 114,776 Palestinians injured. This includes 1,163 people killed and 2,735 injured since the escalation of hostilities on 18 March, according to MoH.
• Between 25 March and 3 April, incidents resulting in fatalities were reported across the Gaza Strip, including the following:
  • On 25 March, at about 1:00, eight Palestinians, including a woman and her daughter, were reportedly killed when a residential building was hit in Block 7 of Al Breij refugee camp, in Deir al Balah.
  • On 26 March, at about 1:23, eight Palestinians, of whom five were children, including a six-month-old infant, were reportedly killed and others injured when a residential building was hit in Jabalya Al Balad, in North Gaza.
  • On 26 March, at about 16:00, five Palestinians were reportedly killed when a food distribution point “As Sadoudi Tekiya (community kitchen)” was hit in Block C in An Nuseirat refugee camp, in Deir al Balah.
  • On 27 March, World Central Kitchen reported that one of their volunteers was killed in an Israeli strike near one of their supported community kitchens just as meals were being distributed.
  • On 27 March, at about 10:51, ten Palestinians, including at least four females and one male, were reportedly killed when a residential building was hit in Beit Lahiya, in North Gaza.
  • On 27 March, at about 16:30, seven Palestinians were reportedly killed when a group of people was hit on An Nafaq street in central Gaza city.
  • On 28 March, at about midnight, at least 12 Palestinians, including at least one woman and one girl, were reportedly killed when a residential building was hit in Az Zaytoun neighbourhood, in Gaza city.
  • On 29 March, at about 12:00, six Palestinians of a single family were reportedly killed and others injured when a residential building was hit in Abasan al Kabira in eastern Khan Yunis. The family had been reportedly displaced and living in a shelter and returned to the house to collect some food when the house was hit.
  • On 30 March, at about 9:35, ten Palestinians, including a woman and at least three children, were reportedly killed and others injured when a tent used by internally displaced persons (IDP) was hit in Al Muharrarat area in western Khan Yunis.
  • On 30 March, at about 21:30, nine Palestinians, including at least three children and a woman, were reportedly killed when an apartment was hit in a residential building in Hamad city, in Khan Younis.
  • On 31 March, at about 17:00, nine Palestinians, including two women and three children, were reportedly killed and others injured when a residential building was hit in At Tuffah neighbourhood, in eastern Gaza city.
  • On 1 April, at about 1:20, five Palestinians, including a journalist, his wife and their three children, were reportedly killed and others injured when a residential building belonging to the journalist’s family was hit in Al Amal neighbourhood in western Khan Younis.
  • On 2 April, at about 2:20, at least 15 Palestinians, including a couple, their children and their grandsons, were reportedly killed when a two-storey residential building was hit in Khan Younis.
  • On 2 April, at about 10:20, 22 Palestinians, including 16 children, women and elderly, were reportedly killed and others injured when an UNRWA clinic hosting displaced people was hit in Jabalya refugee camp, in North Gaza, according to the Government Media Office (GMO). UNRWA’s Commissioner General stated that the facility, which was previously a health centre that was heavily damaged earlier, was sheltering about 700 IDPs when it was hit. Displaced families stayed at the shelter after it was hit because they had nowhere else to go. Among those killed are reportedly nine children, including a two-week-old baby. More than 300 UN buildings have been damaged or destroyed in Gaza since the war began, according to UNRWA, even though all their coordinates were regularly shared with the warring parties, and more than 700 people have been killed while seeking UN protection.
  • On 3 April, at about 4:00, 15 Palestinian men were reportedly killed and others injured when several residential buildings were hit in Ash Shuja’iyyeh area, east of Gaza city. More people reportedly remained under the rubble.
  • On 3 April, at least 21 Palestinians were reportedly killed and 100 others injured, mostly children, when two buildings in a school sheltering IDPs was hit in Gaza city, according to the Palestinian Civil Defense  (PCD). The PCD stated that other people remain under the rubble, but the lack of resources is hindering the retrieval process.

• Between 7 October 2023 and 3 April 2025, according to Israeli forces and official Israeli sources cited in the media, more than 1,607 Israelis and foreign nationals were killed, the majority on 7 October 2023 and its immediate aftermath. This includes 407 soldiers killed, in addition to 2,584 soldiers injured, in Gaza or along the border in Israel since the beginning of the ground operation in October 2023. As of 3 April, it is estimated that 59 Israelis and foreign nationals remain captive in Gaza, including hostages who have been declared dead and whose bodies are being withheld.
• On 30 March, a complex, week-long rescue operation concluded with the recovery of the bodies of eight team members from the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS), six from the Palestinian Civil Defense (PCD) and one from UNRWA. Their co-workers found them buried in the Tal As Sultan area of Rafah, in southern Gaza. All the bodies were recovered on 30 March, except the body of one PCD member that was retrieved on 27 March, during one of several attempts to access the area to search for first responders who went missing on 23 March. Available information indicates that the first team was killed by Israeli forces on 23 March, and that other emergency and aid crews were struck one after another over several hours as they searched for their missing colleagues. They were buried under the sand, alongside their wrecked emergency vehicles – five clearly marked ambulances, a fire truck and a UN car. The mass grave was marked with the emergency light of one of the crushed ambulances. A ninth PRCS medic remains missing. Calling for accountability, PRCS stated: “This massacre of our team is a tragedy not only for us at the PRCS, but also for humanitarian work and humanity.” Noting that this represents the single most deadly attack on Red Cross Red Crescent workers anywhere in the world since 2017, the Secretary General of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Jagan Chapagain, said: “These dedicated ambulance workers were responding to wounded people. They were humanitarians. They wore emblems that should have protected them; their ambulances were clearly marked. They should have returned to their families; they did not.”
• On 31 March, UNRWA Commissioner-General confirmed the deaths of two UNRWA staff in Gaza, including one who was among the 15 fatalities in Tal As Sultan (see above). He stated: “Targeting or endangering emergency responders, journalists or humanitarian workers is a flagrant and severe disregard of international law. In Gaza, these killings have become routine. This cannot become the new norm. There must be accountability.” On 28 March, Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) condemned the killing of a paramedic who served at MAP’s Solidarity polyclinic in Gaza. He was killed along with his wife and their 13-year-old son on 27 March when Israeli forces shelled their tent in Beit Lahiya, where they were sheltering after their home had been destroyed. The family of the paramedic’s brother was also killed in the attack. In total, since 7 October 2023, at least 409 aid workers, including 291 UN staff, have been killed in Gaza.
• On 3 April, the warehouse of the Saudi Center for Culture and Heritage, executive partner of the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center, was reportedly hit by an Israeli airstrike in the eastern Mouraj area, east of Rafah. The attack resulted in the destruction of the warehouse and the burning of all 1,600 pallets of medical supplies in the warehouse that were intended to respond to the needs of patients and injured people, according to the centre's chair of the board.
• Children are bearing the brunt of suffering in Gaza and have “again been plunged into a cycle of deadly violence and deprivation,” in the words of the Executive Director of the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Catherine Russell. Beyond direct conflict violence, children also continue to face serious risks of harm or death; according to the Child Protection (CP) Area of Responsibility, these include unaccompanied children, survivors of gender-based or domestic violence, and children experiencing suicidal ideation. The latest wave of forced displacement, whereby many families have been forced to flee without their belongings, under fire, on foot and with immediate or no warning, has also placed children at heightened risk of family separation and other risks, including trafficking, exploitation, abuse and neglect. This is combined with unprecedented and immeasurable emotional and psychological damage, with potentially profound and irreparable consequences for their well-being and development. At the same time, the ability of CP partners to provide needed services has been constrained by insecurity and movement restrictions. For example, due to the high risk of mass casualty incidents, it is unsafe to gather large groups of children to take part in psychosocial support activities. Furthermore, with no humanitarian or other critical supplies entering Gaza for over a month and depleting stocks, CP partners have been unable to provide clothing and other essential items even to the most vulnerable of displaced children who only have the clothes they are wearing. Despite immense challenges, CP partners continue to address critical child protection cases, including through remote case management modalities. This is in addition to the distribution of child identity bracelets, dissemination of messages to raise awareness about family separation and mitigate the risks thereof, and facilitating family reunifications where feasible, including for cases where high level coordination and safe transport is required to reunite children with their families.

• According to a new assessment by the Education Cluster, which relies on satellite imagery collected on 25 February 2025, nearly 88.5 per cent of school buildings in the Gaza Strip (499 out of 564) have been directly hit or damaged and are estimated to require either full reconstruction or major rehabilitation work to be functional again. Fifty-five per cent of these schools (277) are government schools, a third (162) are UNRWA schools, and 12 per cent (60) are private schools. Moreover, 62 per cent of school buildings that have been used by IDPs as shelters were directly hit. Schools that were directly hit or damaged served nearly 546,500 students and had more than 20,450 teachers before October 2023, which represented about 88 per cent of the total student population and teaching staff in the Gaza Strip.
• Between 25 March and 2 April, out of 72 planned aid movements across the Gaza Strip that were coordinated with the Israeli authorities, 60 per cent (43) were denied, six per cent (four) faced impediments, 30 per cent (22) were facilitated and four per cent (three) cancelled. Out of 27 planned humanitarian assistance missions in or to northern Gaza that were coordinated with the Israeli authorities, only seven were facilitated, 17 were denied, two faced impediments and one was cancelled. These include 16 aid missions that needed to pass through the Israeli-controlled Wadi Gaza area between southern and northern Gaza. Of these, six were facilitated by the Israeli authorities through Al Rashid Road while six others were denied, and one was impeded. Additionally, one mission was facilitated by the Israeli authorities through Salad ad Din Road while two movements via that route were denied. In southern Gaza, out of the 25 planned humanitarian assistance missions, 15 were facilitated, 26 were denied, two were impeded, and two were cancelled.
• The World Food Programme (WFP) warns that hundreds of thousands of people are again at risk of severe hunger and malnutrition as humanitarian food stocks in Gaza dwindle, prices of limited stocks soar, and crossings remain closed. The expansion of military activity in Gaza is also severely disrupting food assistance operations and is putting the lives of aid workers at risk. As of 3 April, after over four weeks without aid or other critical supplies entering Gaza, all 25 subsidized bakeries have closed due to a lack of cooking gas and flour. The Food Security Sector (FSS) warns that food parcel distributions at reduced rations will soon be depleted. More than one million people were left without food parcels in March, in contrast with more than two million people reached during the first 42 days of the ceasefire. The distribution of hot meals, a remaining lifeline in Gaza, continues for less than half the people, but supplies are quickly running out, warns WFP. Meanwhile, FSS reports that over 89,000 metric tonnes of food supplies are stranded outside Gaza and need to be urgently brought inside. The prices of the few remaining stocks in shops have soared, with the price of a bag of wheat flour increasing by 450 per cent, and cooking gas prices have increased by 4,000 per cent compared with pre-October 2023 levels, forcing many households to burn waste and wood for cooking, posing health and environmental risks.
• Access to water remains severely constrained and highly uneven across the Gaza Strip, with households facing significant challenges in accessing sufficient quantities for drinking and domestic use, reports the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Cluster. Findings from a January 2025 assessment, published by the cluster on 28 March, indicate that an average of 19 litres of all-purpose water was accessible per person per day (LPD), a slight improvement from the estimated 16.4 LPD available in August 2024. Nearly 36 per cent of assessed households were unable to access 15 LPD, the minimum standard for drinking, cooking, and basic hygiene in emergencies to safeguard public health, compared with 46.5 per cent of assessed households who lacked access to 15 LPD of all-purpose water in August 2024. By contrast, access to drinking water continued to be extremely limited, primarily due to the fragile production and distribution system in Gaza city and eastern Khan Younis; like August 2024, the January assessment showed that 65 per cent of assessed households were not able to access the minimum of six litres of drinking water per day and about 61 per cent of assessed households relied on purchasing drinking water from the private sector. While water production somewhat improved during the first 42 days of the ceasefire, with a 50 per cent increase in water production and a doubling of functional water collection points, the escalation of hostilities and forced displacement since 18 March have again limited the ability of WASH partners to provide services and repair damaged networks.
• Sanitation conditions across the Gaza Strip remain alarming and are likely exacerbating public health risks, reports the WASH Cluster. For example, three makeshift displacement sites in Al Mawasi are currently reporting an infestation of fleas and mites, causing rashes and other health issues. With a high level of population mobility, severe overcrowding, restricted access to basic services, and a limited ability to improve sanitation conditions – such as implementing vector control measures, bringing in the needed supply of chemicals or making available the 15,000 sanitation units currently stalled at the border – the risk of infestation and disease spread remain high. Already in January 2025, according to the most recent assessment by the WASH cluster, roughly half of assessed households (46 per cent) relied on facilities classified as limited, unimproved, or equivalent to open defecation, and nearly half reported experiencing excreta or sewage release due to flooding (46 per cent) as well as due to sewage overflow (41 per cent), and collapse of sanitation facilities (17 per cent) within 10 metres of their homes. Moreover, assessed households reported exposure to various environmental health threats within 10 metres of their shelters, including rodents and pests (78 per cent), stagnant water (46 per cent), piles of solid waste (42 per cent), and sewage (26 per cent). Meanwhile, the WASH Cluster estimates that 15,000 latrine units are stalled at the border, enough for approximately 300,000 people.
• On 27 March, remaining UNRWA international staff left the Gaza Strip. Due to the implementation of the ban from the State of Israel on UNRWA via the Knesset bill, international UNRWA staff are now banned from entering the Gaza Strip. Meanwhile, UNRWA’s Palestinian local staff in Gaza continue to provide services and assistance in Gaza to people who need it most. The agency remains one of the largest service providers in Gaza, providing a range of nutrition, health, education, water and sanitation services. Between 7 October 2023 and 16 March 2025, UNRWA provided over 7.9 million medical consultations across the Gaza Strip, accounting for over half of people reached with health services since 7 October 2023.

• On 27 March, WHO supported the medical evacuation of 81 patients from Gaza via Kerem Shalom crossing for treatment in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), along with 107 companions. A day earlier, with the support of WHO and partners, patients were transferred from northern to southern Gaza so they could join the evacuation to the UAE, according to WHO. No medical evacuations were reported between 20 and 26 March. Between 1 February and 27 March, 1,805 patients, including 632 children, were evacuated along with 2,713 companions to receive specialized care outside Gaza. According to WHO, about 11,000 to 13,000 people, including more than 4,500 children, remain in urgent need of medical evacuation.

Displacement Orders

• Since 18 March, the Israeli military issued 13 displacement orders, placing about 126.6 square kilometres, or 35 per cent of the Gaza Strip, under active displacement orders. In addition to this area, the Israeli authorities have requested the UN to coordinate movements to the “no-go” zone along Gaza’s perimeter and through the Israeli-controlled Wadi Gaza area between southern and northern Gaza. Together, these areas comprise 65 per cent of the Gaza Strip. Between 25 March and 3 April, seven displacement orders were issued by the Israeli military, directing residents to leave immediately to known shelters, as follows:
  • On 26 March, two displacement orders were issued for areas in Gaza governorate, covering 10.3 square kilometres in seven neighbourhoods. Facilities within the areas slated for displacement include one hospital, two primary health centres (PHCs), one medical point, at least eight functional school structures, and ten temporary learning spaces (TLS), affecting over 10,000 learners.
  • On 29 March, a displacement order was issued for Abasan, Al Qarara and Bani Suhaila in eastern Khan Younis, covering approximately 9.6 square kilometres in seven neighbourhoods.
  • On 31 March, a displacement order was issued for 22 neighbourhoods in Rafah and Khan Younis governorates, including 97 per cent of Rafah governorate, spanning 64 square kilometres. Facilities within this area include at least nine community kitchens, which have been relocated to Khan Younis, two field hospitals, four PHCs, and seven medical points. Between 31 March and 1 April, an estimated 90,000-100,000 people were displaced from Rafah, and are now scattered in Khan Younis city, Mawasi Khan Younis and Deir al Balah.
  • On 1 April, a displacement order was issued for parts of Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanoun in North Gaza covering approximately 5.9 square kilometres in seven neighbourhoods. These include 16,185 people at 39 displacement sites. Other facilities within the area slated for evacuation include two functioning health service points.
  • On 2 April, a displacement order was issued for parts of Jabalya, Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanoun in North Gaza covering approximately 5.5 square kilometres in seven neighbourhoods. These include more than 21,000 people sheltering at 34 displacement sites.
  • On 3 April, a displacement order was issued for parts of Gaza governorate, covering approximately 9.4 square kilometres in four neighbourhoods. These include more than 2,800 people sheltering at seven displacement sites.
• The shelter situation in the Gaza Strip has worsened due to recurrent displacement orders, severe destruction and the lack of resources. With no aid or other critical supplies entering Gaza for the past month and with limited movement between northern and southern Gaza, shelter and non-food stocks have reached critically low levels, particularly in central and southern Gaza. Since the breakdown of the ceasefire, shelter partners have mainly focused on completing ongoing distributions and responding to urgent referrals from other clusters. In an online briefing with aid groups about the situation in Gaza, the Humanitarian Access Manager at the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) stated: “We're seeing the shelter response approaching a complete standstill because we have almost nothing left to distribute despite still seeing these massive forced transfers happening every day, sometimes multiple times a day." He added: “More than a million people remain in dire need of tents in Gaza and 700,000 more require very basic items like plastic sheets and ropes to reinforce their currently inadequate makeshift shelters and the damaged buildings in which they're in … We were in a situation where as many as 10 people at a time are trying to fit inside a single tent, people sheltering in the corridors of crowded school buildings and in the shadows of collapsed buildings as people try to put absolutely anything between themselves and the sky at night. … Most concerningly, many people, with no alternative shelter, are staying in structurally unsound and damaged buildings, where incidents of buildings collapsing on top of men, women, and children continue to be recorded.” Moreover, the operational capacity of Shelter Cluster partners has been significantly affected as local staff have experienced displacement, loss of internet or office access, and in some cases, the loss of their homes.

1219.

The Rights Forum

4 april 2025

Deze week stond opnieuw in het teken van door Israël aangerichte bloedbaden in Gaza. Alleen gisteren al kwamen zeker 112 Palestijnen om het leven door Israëlische aanvallen. Onder hen zijn tientallen kinderen en vrouwen die waren ondergedoken in een schoolgebouw dat dienst deed als toevluchtsoord.

Bijna 300.000 Palestijnen zijn voor de zoveelste keer op de vlucht geslagen sinds Israël halverwege maart het staakt-het-vuren verbrak. De door Israël veroorzaakte humanitaire crisis, gekenmerkt door een gigantisch gebrek aan eten, water, medicijnen en elektriciteit, wordt met de dag erger. 

Een Palestijnse vrouw zit tussen het puin van een gebouw dat vernietigd is door een Israëlische luchtaanval, Khan Yunis, 2 april 2025. [c] dpa picture alliance / Alamy Stock Photo

Oorverdovende stilte
Vanuit Den Haag klinkt nog altijd een oorverdovende stilte. Ondanks de steeds sterker wordende oproep vanuit de Nederlandse samenleving om onze positie tegenover Israël met alle beschikbare krachten te herzien en naar internationaal recht verplichte maatregelen te treffen tegen de genocide in Gaza, weigeren premier Schoof en zijn kabinet hun internationaalrechtelijke verplichtingen na te komen en zich in te zetten  voor het bereiken van sancties tegen Israël. Sancties van dezelfde allure als jegens Rusland.

Met open armen ontvangen
Intussen wordt de Israëlische premier en oorlogsmisdadiger Netanyahu met open armen in EU-lidstaat Hongarije ontvangen. Tijdens zijn bezoek bezorgde zijn gastheer, de Hongaarse premier Orbán, hem ook nog eens een groot cadeau: Hongarije trekt zich terug uit het Internationaal Strafhof, en zal dus niet het arrestatiebevel tegen Netanyahu uitvoeren dat het Hof in november vorig jaar uitvaardigde op verdenking van misdaden tegen de menselijkheid en oorlogsmisdaden in Gaza.

Strijd gaat door
Juist omdat onze zogeheten leiders het laten afweten, blijft het onverminderd belangrijk dat wij ons uitspreken tegen het onnoemelijk grote onrecht in Palestina.

Petitie | Geen defensieverdrag met Israël
Op 22 april stemt de Eerste Kamer over een defensieverdrag met Israël. Een verdrag met een leger dat verantwoordelijk is voor talloze ernstige oorlogsmisdaden mag er nooit komen.

We hopen de komende weken ook nieuwe ontwikkelingen te kunnen melden in de lopende juridische procedures tegen de Nederlandse staat, waaronder de F-35 zaak. 

Wij strijden tegen oorlogsmisdaden, annexatie, bezetting en onderdrukking. Helpt u mee?

Nee, ik steun The Rights Forum niet! Zolang TRF niet uitdrukkelijk sancties eist jegens Israël

Nieuw schandaal | Israël vermoordt 15 humanitaire hulpverleners

Acht ambulancebroeders, zes medewerkers van de burgerbescherming van Gaza en één VN-medewerker zijn in koelen bloede vermoord door Israëlische militairen. De groep werd op 23 maart door Israël onder vuur genomen. De hulpverleners waren met herkenbare ambulances, een brandweerwagen en een VN-voertuig op weg om collega’s te redden die eerder die dag waren beschoten in Rafah.

Pas een week later lukte het collega-hulpverleners om de plek des onheils te bereiken. Daar troffen ze een hartverscheurende scène aan: ambulances, het VN-voertuig en de brandweerwagen waren verpletterd en deels begraven. 'Ze zijn vermoord in hun uniformen. Terwijl ze in duidelijk gemarkeerde voertuigen reden. Hun handschoenen droegen. Op weg waren om levens te redden. Dit had nooit mogen gebeuren.’

Persbureau Reuters publiceerde deze schokkende video van de plaats delict.

Israël ontwijkt
Israël probeert de massamoord in de schoenen van de slachtoffers te schuiven. Het stelt, schrijft The Guardian, dat Israëlische troepen in ‘een gevechtszone’ het vuur hadden geopend op een aantal voertuigen die ‘verdacht in hun richting bewogen, zonder brandende koplampen of sirene’. De komst van het hulpkonvooi zou ook niet zijn gecoördineerd met het leger.

Die verklaring is onhoudbaar. Ook een ‘verdacht bewegend’ voertuig mag, volgens het internationaal recht, niet onder vuur worden genomen – en de passagiers uiteraard niet vermoord. De Rode Halve Maan, de Palestijnse ambulancedienst, stelt dat het district in Gaza waar het drama zich afspeelde als veilige zone was aangemerkt, en coördinatie niet nodig was. Maar bovenal torent het verbod aan Israël, zijn landrovers en zijn militaitren om zich überhaupt in Gaza te bevinden.

Hulpverleners doelwit
Sinds 7 oktober 2023 zijn ten minste 408 hulpverleners, onder wie bijna driehonderd VN-medewerkers, gedood in Gaza, naast ruim duizend artsen en medisch personeel, en ruim honderd leden van de burgerbescherming. Een deel van hen is gericht vermoord. Ook anderen die het lijden van de Palestijnen in Gaza willen verlichten, zijn doelwit van Israël.

Macaber monument | De lijst van 50 duizend gedode Palestijnen is een lijst van schaamte

Vorige week publiceerde dagblad Trouw een aangrijpend artikel over de ruim 50 duizend Palestijnen die Israël sinds 7 oktober 2023 heeft gedood. De krant baseert zich op het meest recente overzicht van het Palestijnse ministerie van Gezondheid in Gaza, waarin de slachtoffers op leeftijd zijn gerubriceerd. De lijst begint met 876 nuljarigen en eindigt met drie personen van honderd en ouder.

15.613 kinderen
De complete lijst omvat 1.516 bladzijden. Wie elke seconde een pagina bekijkt heeft een kleine 26 minuten nodig om de hele lijst vluchtig te bekijken, schrijft de krant. Voor wie dat wil ervaren plaatste Trouw de lijst in een venster dat elke seconde automatisch van pagina wisselt. Onder de Palestijnse slachtoffers zijn 15.613 kinderen.

Lijst van schaamte
De door Trouw gepubliceerde lijst is verplichte kost voor de Nederlandse regering – als lijst van schaamte. Dit is het resultaat als je toestaat dat de Gazastrook – amper groter dan de gemeente Apeldoorn, maar met 2,3 miljoen in plaats van 170 duizend inwoners – met Nederlandse steun bijna 18 maanden wordt gebombardeerd. Dit is waar Nederlands medeplichtigheid concreet toe leidt, 1.516 pagina’s lang.

We roepen premier Dick Schoof en minister van Buitenlandse Zaken Caspar Veldkamp (NSC) op het artikel in Trouw te lezen en de gepubliceerde lijst pagina voor pagina tot zich te laten doordringen. Om daarna aan de Palestijnse en Nederlandse bevolking uit te leggen waarom zij hun verplichting tot ingrijpen hebben ontdoken.

Lees het hele artikel >

De door Trouw gepubliceerde lijst begint met de namen van 876 gedode baby’s. Hun geboortedata staan in de derde kolom van rechts. © MoH / Trouw

Steunfonds voor Palestina-activisten geopend

Steunfonds voor Palestina-activisten geopend

Een bemiddelde Nederlander met hart voor de Palestijnse zaak heeft een steunfonds opgericht voor pro-Palestina-activisten die juridisch vervolgd worden wegens hun activisme en daardoor in financiële problemen komen. De Amsterdamse activist Frank van der Linde beheert het fonds.

Het initiatief, voor het eerst naar buiten gebracht door Het Parool, is op 1 april gelanceerd. Via de site Palestinasteunfonds.nl kunnen activisten een aanvraag doen voor financiële steun van maximaal duizend euro. Het gaat om mensen die niet genoeg geld hebben om zichzelf te verdedigen, maar ook niet in aanmerking komen voor een sociaal advocaat.

Steun van maximaal duizend euro. Het gaat om mensen die niet genoeg geld hebben om zichzelf te verdedigen, maar ook niet in aanmerking komen voor een sociaal advocaat.

Uit onze agenda
zaterdag 5 april t/m zaterdag 12 april
 

Demonstraties en wakes
• Demonstratie tegen Caterpillar op zaterdag 5 april in Den Bosch, Amadeiroplein (13.00 uur)
• Wake op zaterdag 5 april in Maastricht, Markt, achter het Stadhuis (16.00 uur)
• Wake op zaterdag 5 april in Utrecht, Domplein (20.00 uur)
• Wake op zondag 6 april in Haarlem, Grote Markt (14.00 uur)
• Sit-in rijksambtenaren op donderdag 10 april in Den Haag, Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken, Rijnstraat 8 (12.00 uur)
• Zuidas March Against Genocide op vrijdag 11 april in Amsterdam, Gustav Mahlerplein (14.00 uur)
• Wake op zaterdag 12 april in Groningen, Waagplein (13.00 uur

1219A.

3 april 2025

In the past month alone, we’ve witnessed two historic wins:

• For the first time in U.S. history, residents petitioned to put Israeli apartheid on the ballot. USCPR Youth Fellow Samia, with the Vermont Coalition for Palestinian Liberation, led divestment wins in Vermont, where five towns voted to adopt the Apartheid Free Communities pledge to end all support of Israeli apartheid.

Iman Abid,                 

Director

1218.

3 april 2025

Today's headlines

Palestine beyond the colonial logic of international law

The colonization of Palestine is not an anomaly in the liberal global order but its most glaring indictment. It exposes the hypocrisy of an international system that decries colonialism while institutionalizing and legitimizing it.

Read more

Susan Abulhawa’s response to PEN America’s complicity with genocide

Susan Abulhawa and Nancy Kricorian

Read Susan Abulhawa’s scorching letter to the head of PEN America where she takes a blowtorch to the organization’s continued complicity with Israel's genocide in Gaza.

Read more

1217.

3 april 2025

Support our Gaza reporting

When we report on Gaza, we are not just sharing news with an international audience. We deliver stories others refuse to publish—stories of our people.

Since the beginning of this war, Israel has killed more than 210 journalists in Gaza. You will not find numbers like this in any other war zone. Our oppressors understand that our voices are powerful—more powerful than their weapons. That is why they target us, and our families.

Our reporting doesn’t just refute Israeli lies echoed in Western media—it exposes them. It forces the world never to forget what is being done to our people. Our journalism is a tool for memory, resistance, and accountability.

With gratitude, 

Tareq Hajjaj, Gaza Correspondent

1216.

3 april 2025

Readers’ Recommendations

1215.

3 april 2025

1214.

2 april 2025

EMAIL CONGRESS: BLOCK WEAPONS TO ISRAEL

DEMAND CONGRESS:
VOTE YES ON THESE RESOLUTIONS

1213.

2 april 2025

April 5th March on Washington to End the Genocide at 1 pm

The situation in Gaza is simply indescribable. This is the worst phase of the genocide that we have witnessed over the last 18 months. 

The most heartbreaking thing about this genocide is that there are Gazans all over social media pleading with the world to intervene to end their suffering, and yet not a single nation has heeded their call. They feel like they are being exterminated, and the most that people are doing is liking their social media posts.

This is unacceptable, and we refuse to let the people of Gaza be erased in silence.

Join us THIS Saturday, April 5th, in a historic march on Washington to demand an end to the genocide. Even if we don’t feel that this will change anything, do it for the people of Gaza who are watching us and what we do. This is the least we can do for them.

Where: Washington, DC - Assembling on Pennsylvania Ave and 3rd St NW 
When: 1:00 PM 

• Get Your Bus Information
• Have Your Organization Endorse the March
• Join a Contingent
• Download and Post a Graphic

 March with us as we demand an end to the genocide, to free all political prisoners, stop weapons sales to the genocidal state, and put an end to student repression.

We refuse to stand idly by, watching a genocide waged in our name and with our weapons. We refuse to be shackled by despair and held captive by fear. Above all, we refuse to surrender our civil liberties and constitutional rights under the pretext of concern about a dictatorship taking shape in Washington.

In solidarity,
American Muslims for Palestine (AMP)

1212.

2 april 2025

1211.

2 april 2025

Last month as Israel broke the ceasefire in Gaza, we asked you to contact your representatives to support new Joint Resolutions of Disapproval (JRDs) to block billions in deadly weapons sales to Israel.

In the two weeks since, the Israeli military has killed more than 1,000 Palestinians, including at least 322 children. On Sunday, as families celebrated Eid al-Fitr to mark the end of Ramadan, bombs rained down, killing dozens of children just moments after they had opened their presents.

These massacres have only been possible with the U.S. government’s continuous supply of weapons and military funding. There is no other solution: Stop arming Israel now.

This week, Senator Bernie Sanders will bring the resolutions to a vote in the Senate, forcing Senators to go on the record with their position on genocide.

This vote will force attention back on Gaza, and it provides an opportunity for us to build pressure and more support for an arms embargo.

Use our tool to send an email to your Members of Congress to demand that they vote to block billions in weapons to Israel.

And when you’re done, use this tool from our friends at Jewish Voice for Peace to call your Senators and make sure they got the message.

See our original email below with more context on this vote.

Steadily forward,

Sandra Tamari

Since 2 am last night, Israel has been carpet bombing Gaza, violating the ceasefire agreement with a green-light from the Trump administration. These attacks have killed more than 400 Palestinians in just the past few hours, making it one of the largest single-day death tolls since the start of the genocide 17 months ago.

This is not just another escalation. Even during the ceasefire, the Israeli military killed more than 150 Palestinians in Gaza, demonstrating a blatant disregard for the agreement. This is a continuation of a systematic campaign of genocide, funded by the U.S. government.

Since his inauguration, the Trump administration has approved $12 billion in weapons to Israel, adding to the $18 billion that Biden funneled in the final year and a half of his term. This is not aid. This is complicity in war crimes.

For years, our government has put the interests of the Israeli regime and corporate elites before those of everyday, working class people. Now as Israel renews its genocidal attacks in Gaza, annexes more Palestinian land, and pushes the U.S. towards escalation with Iran on their behalf, we are closer than ever to another catastrophic regional war that would have devastating impacts for us all. We must not let this happen

Our communities here at home are struggling to survive. Families can’t afford groceries or basic medical care. People are being evicted. Our infrastructure is crumbling. And yet, both parties in Congress continue to use billions of our tax dollars to arm a genocidal regime instead of investing in the needs of our own people.

As we fight to stop the genocide of the Palestinian people in Gaza and the West Bank, the Trump administration is ramping up repression here at home, targeting activists and criminalizing dissent to shield the Zionist regime from accountability. We know the Trump administration is also using Palestinian activists to begin a broader crackdown on all of our movements for justice and liberation.

Enough is enough. Stop arming Israel. Stop the genocide. Our communities deserve more than a government funding destruction abroad and ignoring suffering at home.

We are all in this together, and we won’t back down or let up.

With urgency,

Sandra Tamari

Adalah Justice Project    

1210.

2 april 2025

Could the FIFA world be any more corrupt?

UEFA, the FIFA governing football body in Europe, not only continues to allow apartheid Israel to play in its leagues. UEFA has now accepted Israel as a candidate for its Executive Committee.

That’s right. As Israel continues to subject 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza to massacres, starvation and forced displacement with nowhere to go, while continuing its rolling brutalities and ethnic cleansing in the West Bank, UEFA sees Israel as fit for its powerful governing board.

UEFA is sportswashing Israel’s military occupation, apartheid and genocide and showing contempt for ICJ rulings and their legal obligations. UEFA, like FIFA, is helping Israel destroy the pillars of international law and tarnishing the beautiful game.

The vote is tomorrow, Thursday, at the UEFA Congress in Belgrade. Now is the time to make our voice heard: #BanIsrael from UEFA and FIFA!

The fans in stadiums around the world have been showing just how disconnected the colonial powers that dominate world football are from those who truly love the sport.

Red Card Israel banners have been displayed in dozens of stadiums on five continents, from grassroots football to the top leagues, from fan clubs to some teams.

­  

Do it for the more than 700+ Palestinian footballers and athletes killed by Israel’s Gaza genocide.

Do it for former footballer and Asian Football Confederation coach Muhammad Ibrahim Mahmoud Inshasi, killed by Israel in Gaza last week.

Do it for 17 year old Walid Khaled Abdullah Ahmad, Al-Asur Academy goalkeeper, who last week became the first Palestinian child prisoner to be killed by the horrific conditions of Israel’s illegal detention system.

And join the Palestinian call to peacefully disrupt matches until FIFA and UEFA respect international law and their own statutes by banning apartheid Israel just as apartheid South Africa was banned.

No rest for FIFA or UEFA.

In solidarity,

Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI)

1209.

2 april 2025

Today's headlines

‘Every arrest that ICE has made is a political one’: How immigrant rights activists are fighting attacks on the Palestine movement

“This is about Palestine and this is not about Palestine,” said New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice director Amy Torres at a recent rally in support of Mahmoud Khalil. “This is about this administration. . . going after every single one of us.”

Yemen is acting responsibly to stop genocide and the U.S. is bombing them for it

Yemen's Red Sea blockade in defense of Palestinians is squarely supported by international law. But the country is being ruthlessly bombed by the U.S. to ensure Israeli impunity for its continued siege and genocide in Gaza.

1208.

2 april 2025

In Gaza this week, the Palestine Red Crescent Society says it is devastated by the killing of its emergency workers by Israeli forces.

1207.

1 april 2005

The Hind Rajab Foundation is launching urgent legal actions to block Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s planned visit to Hungary. Netanyahu is currently wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. HRF will petition the ICC, call on the Hungarian Public Prosecutor to arrest him, and notify European airspace authorities to deny him passage. Legal teams across Europe are also preparing to activate universal jurisdiction if he travels beyond Hungary. HRF urges all European states to uphold international law and refuse safe haven to suspected war criminals.

The Hind Rajab Foundation (HRF) will launch a coordinated legal and political campaign tomorrow to counter the visit of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—currently wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC)—to Hungary or anywhere in Europe.

Netanyahu is subject to an ICC arrest warrant for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Under his command, the Israeli military has overseen the killing of more than 32,000 Palestinians in Gaza, including over 13,000 children, alongside the widespread destruction of civilian infrastructure and the use of starvation as a weapon of war. These actions are not only morally indefensible—they are legally prosecutable under international law.

Welcoming Netanyahu to Hungary—or facilitating his travel through European airspace—constitutes a direct violation of the legal obligations of ICC State Parties.

HRF will submit a detailed Article 15 communication to the Office of the Prosecutor of the ICC, urging an investigation into Hungary’s breach of its obligations under the Rome Statute by inviting and receiving an individual subject to an ICC arrest warrant.

The communication will also address the responsibility of other European States whose airspace may be used to facilitate Netanyahu’s travel, despite their legal obligations to intercept and arrest ICC suspects passing through their jurisdiction.

HRF is also coordinating with legal teams across multiple European jurisdictions to prepare universal jurisdiction filings and initiate arrest procedures should Netanyahu land or transit through any additional State Party territories.

Furthermore, we are urging various competent bodies to take injunctive actions to block Netanyahu’s overflight through national airspaces, based on ICC State Party obligations and precedent.

Furhermore, HRF will formally request that the Hungarian Public Prosecutor initiate immediate proceedings under Hungary’s international criminal law framework to arrest Netanyahu upon arrival. Hungary is legally bound to cooperate with the ICC and to surrender suspects. Inaction would constitute complicity and a breach of domestic and international legal commitments.

Benjamin Netanyahu is not an ordinary head of state. He is a suspect named in an active ICC arrest warrant, based on overwhelming evidence of mass atrocities. Hosting him—or allowing his aircraft to pass through national airspace—signals not neutrality, but betrayal: a betrayal of international justice, of the ICC’s authority, and of every victim who has suffered under his command.

The HRF will act swiftly, decisively, and publicly. And we will continue to expose those who allow war criminals to walk free.

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

1206.

1 april 2025

Demand Your Senators Vote YES on Sanders’s Resolutions to Stop U.S. Arms Sales to Israel

Dear Reader,

This week, Senator Bernie Sanders is leading an effort in the U.S. Senate to halt $8.8 billion in arms sales to Israel, which would further enable the devastating aggression against Palestinians in Gaza by Israel. This is your chance to directly push your Senators to end the U.S. partnership in Israel’s genocide of Palestinians and its assault on human rights and international law.

More than 50,000 Palestinians have been killed since October 2023—an unimaginable toll made possible by the very weapons the U.S. continues to supply, including devastating 2,000-pound bombs. These arms are not just aiding Israel’s genocide, they are enabling it.

Senator Sanders’s Joint Resolutions of Disapproval (JRD) offer a critical and immediate mechanism to halt these weapons transfers, forcing Israel to reconsider its relentless assault and bringing us one step closer to ending the genocide. 

TAKE ACTION NOW:  demand your Senators to vote YES on Sanders' Proposed Legislation!

Israel has completely severed Gaza from the world—no food, water, electricity, or medical supplies are allowed into the enclave. Israel’s total blockade has plunged over two million Palestinians into extreme suffering, starvation, and desperation.

As of yesterday, all bakeries in the Gaza Strip have ceased operations due to a lack of flour and diesel, prompting fears of an imminent famine similar to the crisis experienced in March of the previous year!

​On March 17, Israel shattered the ceasefire, unleashing relentless airstrikes that killed over 400 Palestinians in just one night, including nearly 200 children. Israel is now intensifying its assault with a massive ground invasion, aiming to deepen an already devastating humanitarian crisis. 

The pending U.S. arms sale, worth $8.8 billion, includes over 35,000 one-ton bombs specifically designed to maximize destruction. These weapons enable Israel’s ongoing atrocities, making the United States directly complicit in war crimes and genocide against Palestinians. It is critical and urgent that your Senators hear from you now to halt these sales immediately. Use the following call and email tools to demand they vote NO. 

In solidarity,
Americans for Justice in Palestine Action

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1 april 2025

As people around the world marked the end of Ramadan with Eid al-Fitr celebrations, Palestinians in Gaza mourned their loved ones. Israel escalated its genocidal campaign, killing at least 85 people on Sunday.

Meanwhile, here in the U.S., the Trump administration continues to target and disappear student activists for demanding justice and speaking out against Israel’s crimes against humanity.

At a time when our government is fueling Israel’s genocide of the Palestinian people, and waging war on our right to free speech, we cannot be silent. We must fight back.

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1 april 2025

Today's headlines

‘It’s not the time to be afraid anymore’ Columbia students fight back against deportation threats

Columbia students are banding together as ICE and the NYPD target Palestine activism. "[Columbia] is willing to give the Trump administration whatever it wants," one student tells Mondoweiss. "But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t keep pushing too."

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Israeli soldier Orel Benyaish is accused of committing war crimes and acts of genocide in Gaza, alongside fellow soldier Yuval Vagdani. The complaint, filed in Romania by the Hind Rajab Foundation, includes visual evidence of both soldiers posing before and during the controlled demolition of a civilian building. These acts occurred in the Netzarim corridor, a zone heavily targeted for destruction and depopulation. The case is legally grounded in Romania’s obligations under the Rome Statute and Geneva Conventions. It forms part of broader international efforts to hold perpetrators accountable for atrocities committed against the Palestinian population.

Full statement available below Support Our Work

1 april 2025

Benyaish (left) and Vagdani posing in front of the house of one of the plaintiffs before blowing it up

Bucharest, March 31, 2025
Today, the Hind Rajab Foundation, through its legal representative, has filed a criminal complaint before the Romanian Prosecutor’s Office attached to the High Court of Cassation and Justice against Orel Benyaish, an Israeli soldier from the 432nd Battalion of the Givati Brigade. He is accused of committing war crimes and acts of genocide during Israel’s ongoing military operations in the Gaza Strip.

The evidence submitted includes images and videos posted by Benyaish himself, showing his direct involvement in the destruction of residential buildings in the Netzarim corridor—a heavily targeted area where thousands of Palestinian civilians were forcibly displaced. He appears in uniform, smiling in front of homes rigged with explosives. In these same images is fellow soldier Yuval Vagdani, also of the Givati Brigade, who was photographed in the moment explosives were being placed for a controlled demolition. The two acted together, knowingly and deliberately, in destroying civilian homes without any military justification.

This is not a matter of battlefield tragedy. It is the calculated and boastful destruction of civilian life, carried out with impunity and celebrated in social media posts. The detonation, which reduced entire homes to rubble, is not only a war crime under international humanitarian law—it is an expression of genocidal intent. These actions were not part of legitimate combat. They were designed to humiliate, terrorize, and annihilate a people, in flagrant violation of the Geneva Conventions, the Rome Statute, and the most fundamental norms of human dignity.

Last December in Brazil, a judge issued a probe order against Yuval Vagdani for his role in this same crime. The Romanian complaint is therefore not isolated, but part of a broader international legal effort to end the impunity of soldiers who participate in the collective punishment and ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian population.

Romania, as a party to the Rome Statute and the Geneva Conventions, bears not only the legal competence but the moral obligation to act. When war criminals walk freely on foreign soil, justice demands intervention. The principle of universal jurisdiction exists precisely for such moments—when those responsible for atrocities are beyond the reach of justice in their own countries.
The international community has long borne witness to the structural impunity enjoyed by Israeli military personnel. This impunity has emboldened perpetrators to commit unspeakable crimes—openly, proudly, and without fear of consequence. It is time for this cycle to end.

We call on Romanian authorities to take urgent action: to launch a full criminal investigation, to prevent the suspect from leaving the country, to secure all relevant digital and physical evidence, and to cooperate with other jurisdictions pursuing related cases. Anything less would be a betrayal of the legal and ethical commitments that bind all nations in the defense of humanity.
Justice must not remain hostage to political considerations. When the machinery of state is used to carry out acts of ethnic destruction, it falls on all people of conscience, and all states of law, to say: not in our name.

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1 april 2025

Trump administration says it has revoked at least 300 visas for Palestine advocacy

Last week Secretary of State Marco Rubio estimated that he had already signed about 300 letters to revoke visas from students and other visitors to the United States.

“I don’t know actually if it’s primarily student visas,” he told reporters “It’s a combination of visas. They’re visitors to the country. If they’re taking activities that are counter to our foreign, to our national interest, to our foreign policy, we’ll revoke the visa.”

He said he would not be revealing the criteria by which the administration was selecting people for deportation.

“We’re not going to talk about the process by which we’re identifying it because obviously we’re looking for more people,” said Rubio.

“The administration is deliberately opaque about the criteria they are using to select its targets for deportation in order to sow panic among international students and stifle advocacy for Palestinian human rights and liberation,” Mudassar Toppa, a staff attorney from CLEAR, a legal nonprofit and clinic at CUNY School of Law, told Mondoweiss.

“The administration hopes that the chaos and uncertainty behind how this policy is being implemented will silence the voices of non-citizen students who advocate for a free Palestine and encourage them to voluntarily leave the country to avoid the specter of being abducted, detained, and deported,” he continued. “As we’ve seen, rather than silence dissent, the government’s actions have only emboldened voices demanding that basic rights be respected here, in Palestine, and beyond.”

We’re learning more about the details of this crackdown every day, but here’s a rundown of one of the individuals who have already been targeted by ICE.

Mahmoud Khalil

Mahmoud Khalil was detained by ICE agents at his home in New York on March 8 and immediately sent to a immigration detention facility in Louisiana.

The Trump administration says it revoked Khalil’s student visa and green card over his involvement in the Gaza protests at Columbia, which it has tagged as antisemitic. Some officials have claimed that he passed out literature in support of Hamas, but they have never produced any evidence connected to this.

The deportation proceedings were temporarily blocked by Judge Jesse Furman. The Southern District Court of New York ruled that Khalil’s lawsuit challenging his unlawful detention should be transferred to New Jersey, despite the efforts of Trump’s lawyers to have the case heard in Louisiana.

Mondoweiss has covered Khalil’s ordeal and published multiple pieces on the case.

• ICE arrests Palestinian activist for involvement in Columbia protests
• Mahmoud Khalil will remain detained in Louisiana following brief court hearing
• Mahmoud Khalil is a Palestinian political prisoner, and he is not the first in the U.S.
• Letter from Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian political prisoner in Louisiana

• When speaking up for Palestine becomes a crime

Zooming Out: Campuses capitulate

In the last issue of this newsletter, we covered Columbia’s complicity with the Trump administration. We are continually seeing other universities bend to the desires of the Trump regime.

Harvard

This week the administration threatened to hold up funding to Harvard, in the same way that it did with Columbia. A press release from Department of Education, the General Services Administration and the Health and Human Services Department declared that $255.6 million in Harvard contracts and $8.7 billion in multi-year grants would be examined over Harvard’s alleged inability to crack down on antisemitism.

“Harvard has served as a symbol of the American Dream for generations,” said Secretary of Education Linda McMahon in a statement. “Harvard’s failure to protect students on campus from anti-Semitic discrimination — all while promoting divisive ideologies over free inquiry — has put its reputation in serious jeopardy.”

Rather than stand up for the First Amendment or his students protesting genocide, Harvard President Alan Garber quickly put out a statement promising to play ball with Trump.

“We still have much work to do,” it reads. “We will engage with members of the federal government’s task force to combat antisemitism to ensure that they have a full account of the work we have done and the actions we will take going forward to combat antisemitism. We resolve to take the measures that will move Harvard and its vital mission forward while protecting our community and its academic freedom. By doing so, we combat bias and intolerance as we create the conditions that foster the excellence in teaching and research that is at the core of our mission.”

New York University

Last week, Dr. Joanne Liu, an associate professor at McGill and a pediatric emergency medicine physician who formerly served as the head of Doctors Without Borders, told CTV News that New York University (NYU) canceled a scheduled talk she was set to give at the school because she planned to show slides about casualties in Gaza.

The night before her speech, Liu got a call from NYU’s vice-chair of the education department expressing concern that her slides could be seen as “anti-governmental” and antisemitic.

Liu agreed to make some edits, but the school eventually told her the talk would be canceled either way.

Columbia University

Amid student deportations and Trump’s threats to cut funding, Columbia University president Katrina Armstrong scampered away from her position.

Claire Shipman, who had been the co-chair of the university’s board of trustees, was named as acting president.

It’s a short-lived gig these days, as Armstrong’s predecessor Minouche Shafik left the post amid similar protest and controversy in 2023.

The Trump administration’s Joint Task Force to Combat Antisemitism put out a statement calling Armstrong’s departure an “important step toward advancing negotiations” between the government and the school.

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Readers’ Recommendations

= Israeli troops killed  Palestinian medics and buried them in a mass grave, UN says (AP)

= Germany turns to US playbook: deportations target Gaza war protesters (The Intercept)

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1 april 2025

Just days ago, Israel brutally assassinated Palestinian journalists Hossam Shabat and Mohammad Mansour in Gaza—targeted for their courageous work documenting the genocide.

In a posthumous message, Hossam left us with this plea:

“Do not stop speaking about Gaza. Do not let the world look away. Keep fighting, keep telling our stories—until Palestine is free.”

It’s hard to imagine a more powerful mandate. And yet, honoring it feels like such a small act compared to the ultimate sacrifice these journalists—and so many others—have made to show the world the truth.

In solidarity,

Sofia Farah

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