"Statehood cannot be declared in press releases while genocide burns Gaza and land is stolen daily in the West Bank. Recognition of Palestine is hollow if it ignores the uprooting of people and the violence that became a daily reality. Better to first recognize the atrocities and confront injustice than to offer symbolic statehood to a people whose very existence is already rooted in their land yet their land, and their lives are under attack." Sliman Mansour of Palestine

                 A caricature that was published in Al Fajr English language newspaper in the 1990’s.

sliman.mansour

Statehood cannot be declared in press releases while genocide burns Gaza and land is stolen daily in the West Bank. Recognition of Palestine is hollow if it ignores the uprooting of people and the violence that became a daily reality. Better to first recognize the atrocities and confront injustice than to offer symbolic statehood to a people whose very existence is already rooted in their land yet their land, and their lives are under attack.

From Gaza to Lebanon, Syria to Yemen, Israel is slaughtering civilians and calling it self-defense...

sarah

@sahouraxo 

Israel dropped a bomb on a car carrying an entire family in South Lebanon — killing 3 children and their father. 

The mother and eldest daughter are critically injured. 

From Gaza to Lebanon, Syria to Yemen, Israel is slaughtering civilians and calling it self-defense. 

Courtney is live in South Lebanon, documenting Israel’s ethnic cleansing. 

Every day, Israel murders innocent people in the south. 

 Every day, Israeli drones are terrorizing civilians, and even the journalists telling their stories. 

All on Lebanese soil. 

Both doctors described the psychological warfare Palestinians in Gaza and the medical workers are enduring: no internet, no communication with families, constant bombs. Dr. Aziz: “This is a stain on our humanity. I’m ashamed to call myself human… we need absolute, unimpeded medical aid and an arms embargo now.”

 Australian Doctors in Gaza: “Healthcare Is Not Collapsing — It Has Collapsed” Dr. Nada Abu Alrub and Dr. Saya Aziz, two Australian doctors volunteering in northern Gaza’s Al-Shifa Hospital, have released a harrowing video describing mass death under relentless bombardment.

After an eight-hour trip north, Dr. Abu Alrub described “bombing after bombing with Apaches, F-35s, F-16s, drones — weapons attacking us from everywhere. The number of patients and the number of dead bodies arriving are ridiculous.”

“We are hardly surviving… no soap, no gloves, nothing at all. We’re treating patients on the floor — mass casualty after mass casualty.” 

“Today they bombed just in front of the main entrance of the hospital. Two days ago they did the same. The issue is we live there — our accommodation is within walking distance. So we could be at any time at that side of the bomb. As internationals, we’ve not even been given an evacuation order. We know that we might die at any time.”

Dr. Aziz called the situation “cataclysmic”: operating beds broken, flies swarming theater rooms, no suction, no sterility. “Healthcare is not collapsing — it has collapsed.” 

Both doctors described the psychological warfare Palestinians in Gaza and the medical workers are enduring: no internet, no communication with families, constant bombs. Dr. Aziz: “This is a stain on our humanity. I’m ashamed to call myself human… we need absolute, unimpeded medical aid and an arms embargo now.” 

Dr. Abu Alrub recalled one case: a woman beheaded by an Israeli strike, nine months pregnant. “We had to deliver her by emergency C-section… luckily, the baby girl survived.” https://x.com/dropsitenews/s 

 https://x.com/dropsitenews/status/1969476559145746645

"Even before the war, we lived in danger every day. And today, the suffering has only grown worse… " Mahmoud Massri from Gaza. A witness of the Genocide.

 Mahmoud Massri | مَحْمُود

@MahmoudMassri15

Biomedical Engineer | AUG from #Gaza. A witness of the Genocide.

 

I was sitting with my father, talking to him, and I said: I wish we could return to our life before the war, to live in safety as we once did. 

My father looked at me with a hint of anger and said: Do you really think there was ever safety before the war? 

Then he continued, his voice heavy with sorrow: In 2005, while I was sitting in front of our home in Beit Hanoun, a bullet from the occupation came from the east, from the border. It entered my back and exited through my stomach… 

I was just sitting in front of my house thinking I was safe, but there has never been safety for us in Gaza. 

Even before the war, we lived in danger every day.  And today, the suffering has only grown worse… 

There is no safety for us, not in our homes nor in our streets. 

We live in an open-air prison under the sky, where bullets are fired at us randomly. 

Here we are, trying to hold on to life — but safety… has never been our share. 

Israel spending millions on online ad campaigns to deny Gaza famine: Report Israel spent $50M on deal with Google, X, other ad platforms to deny famine in Gaza, says new report: "Israel's strategy highlights the vulnerability of the international public to emotionally persuasive narratives and the challenges faced by fact-checkers and traditional journalists in countering them..."

A girl is crying while holding an empty pot in her hand as Palestinians in the Al-Mawasi area of Khan Yunis, Gaza on September 05, 2025.

İlayda Çakırtekin  | 16.09.2025 

ISTANBUL

Israel has spent 167 million shekels ($50 million) on a deal with platforms such as Google and US social media platform X, plus French and Israeli ad platforms, to deny the famine in Gaza, Spanish broadcaster RTVE said Tuesday based on a Eurovision News Spotlight report.

According to a joint investigation by Eurovision, Israel’s Exemption Committee in June approved an application by state-run ad agency Lapam to run public information campaigns worth $50 million with Google, X, and French and Israeli platforms Outbrain and Teads.

The contracts, running from June 17 till Dec. 31, allocate 150 million shekels ($45 million) to YouTube and Google's ad campaign management platform Display & Video 360.

X also got 10 million shekels ($3.03 million) while French and Israeli ad platforms Outbrain and Teads got 7 million shekels ($2.12 million).

The report, titled "The new front of war: Inside Israel's digital 'hasbara' offensive," shows how Israel’s state-sponsored campaigns use social media, paid influencers, and military tours to shape the global narrative on Gaza.

Documents from 2018 to July 2025, revealed by the investigation, show that Lapam uses Google and Meta ad platforms to promote Israeli government narratives and counter critics of Tel Aviv’s policies and military operations through paid campaigns.

Last year, Lapam sponsored 2,000 ads, with 900 directed at domestic audiences and 1,100 aimed at international viewers in selected countries, the report said, citing the Google Ads Transparency Center.

The ad agency ran over 4,000 ads between Jan. 1 and Sept. 5, 2025, with half targeting international audiences.

Israel especially uses these campaigns to try to deny the famine in Gaza, "portraying a semblance of normalcy within the besieged enclave."   

Targeting critics

Lapam published dozens of ads on Google, YouTube, Teads/Outbrain, and X showing bustling Gaza markets to contradict the declaration of famine by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC).

The investigation also found that another ad campaign backed by Lapam urged readers to spot "flaws and inconsistencies" in the IPC famine report.

Appearing above Google search results across several European countries – including Belgium, UK, Denmark, Sweden, and Germany – it steered users toward an Israeli government website.

The same day the IPC released its initial assessment, Lapam launched a multilingual video ad campaign on the Israeli Foreign Ministry’s YouTube channel showing busy markets and open restaurants in Gaza.

The investigation also found that between August and early September 2025, videos showing Gaza’s markets and restaurants garnered over 30 million views, driven not organically but through paid promotion via Google Ads across multiple countries.

Israel’s ad campaign also targets critics, including top search results for “UNRWA,” directing users to a government website that labels the UN agency for Palestinian refugees a “front for Hamas.”

Francesca Albanese, UN special rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories, has also faced months of paid ads across Europe accusing her of being “anti-Semitic” for criticizing Israeli policies.

Eurovision said they sought comment from Google twice on its ad policies and Israeli government spending, but got no response.

"Israel's strategy highlights the vulnerability of the international public to emotionally persuasive narratives and the challenges faced by fact-checkers and traditional journalists in countering them," the report underlined.

https://www.aa.com.tr/en/world/israel-spending-millions-on-online-ad-campaigns-to-deny-gaza-famine-report/3689634 

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Israel imposes permits for Palestinians to access their own West Bank villages: Residents of three Palestinian communities now need Israeli-issued permits to access their own homes, fuelling fears of creeping annexation

An Israeli soldier stops a Palestinian driver during a raid at the entrance to the Old City of Nablus in the West Bank, 17 September 2025 (Nasser Ishtayeh/SOPA Images via Reuters)

By Fayha Shalash in Ramallah, occupied Palestine

Published date: 20 September 2025

Israeli forces have introduced new restrictions requiring Palestinian residents of three occupied West Bank communities to obtain permits to enter their own areas.

The permits, which label the holder as authorised to enter “Israel”, suggest the three communities - located northwest of occupied East Jerusalem - are being treated as part of Israeli territory.

Residents fear the move signals a step towards the de facto annexation of the areas amid ongoing Israeli efforts to assert control over parts of the West Bank.

The affected communities - the villages of Beit Iksa and Nabi Samuil, along with the Khalayleh neighbourhood - have long been subjected to severe Israeli restrictions. 

They are surrounded by the Israeli separation wall on one side and military checkpoints on the other.

Under the new system, permits are limited to specific locations and purposes, placing significant constraints on residents' freedom of movement.

Nawal Barakat, a resident of Nabi Samuil, told Middle East Eye that Israel’s Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories had contacted local families, instructing them to visit the Coordination and Liaison Office in al-Ram, north of Jerusalem, to collect the new permits.

She noted that residents had not applied for the permits, which were issued without their consent. 

The cards were orange in colour, indicating they were designated for a specific purpose and not valid for unrestricted entry into Israel.

“We still don't know how far this permit will go,” she said.

“Will we be treated as Israelis, even though we hold Palestinian ID cards? Or will we carry the permits and be confined to our village, isolated from the rest of the world?”

Nabi Samuil has a population of around 350 people, following years of Israeli policies that have steadily displaced residents and forced many to relocate abroad.

The village spans around 3,500 dunams (350 hectares) of land, but only 1,050 remain accessible to residents after Israeli authorities seized the majority under the pretext of archaeological preservation.

“There are no basic services in the village: no schools, no clinics, no institutions - not even a grocery shop,” Barakat said. “We’re forced to travel to neighbouring towns just to buy something as simple as bread.”

Palestinians are also barred from constructing new buildings in the village. 

Young couples are unable to build or renovate homes due to Israeli restrictions imposed under the designation of the area as a nature reserve, pushing them to live outside the village. 

‘Isolated from everything’

Murad Zayed, Mayor of Beit Iksa, told MEE that residents of the affected communities were notified earlier this month of Israel’s intention to annex the areas and that the distribution of new ID cards had begun.

However, residents of Beit Iksa have yet to receive these cards.

Zayed explained that even before the latest measures, life in Beit Iksa was tightly controlled.

Since 2006, the town has been sealed off by an Israeli military barrier and residents have been subject to prior coordination for nearly every aspect of daily life, including entering and leaving the town.... READ MORE   https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-imposes-permits-palestinians-access-their-own-west-bank-villages

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As its former ambassadors, we urge the EU to sanction Israel now- Europe must not let Gaza become the graveyard of international law and human rights. STATEMENT by Former EU and Member State Ambassadors and Senior Officials

Palestinians search for wood to sell or use for cooking amid the rubble of a building which was destroyed in an Israeli military strike in Gaza City, Sunday, Sept. 14, 2025 [AP Photo/Yousef Al Zanoun]

Amid mounting concern about the remorseless attacks by Israel against the civilian population in Gaza, which, since October 7, 2023, have reportedly led to the deaths and injuries of over 227,000 Palestinians and the displacement, in the last two weeks, of more than 400,000 people, 325 former European Union and Member State Ambassadors and Senior Officials are calling for urgent action.

We strongly urge the EU to immediately impose targeted sanctions on the Israeli government and suspend the EU-Israel Association Agreement. In addition, we urge the President of the United Nations General Assembly and the Chair of the United Nations Security Council to convene emergency meetings of both bodies to adopt sanctions against Israel for the multiple violations of international law being perpetrated daily against the people of Palestine. The United Nations, being the established global body for peace and security, must live up to its responsibilities.

We cannot stand idly by, watching Gaza reduced to rubble and its inhabitants driven into destitution and starvation. The issue is whether the EU and like-minded nations will stand up for basic humanity and for the values that underpin the post-war international order. Action needs to be taken urgently to preserve life, end the military onslaught in Gaza, secure the return of all hostages, and move to governance arrangements that allow for a swift return of the Palestinian Authority to Gaza as a necessary step towards a unified and democratically elected Palestinian government.

We demand that EU leaders respond urgently to the fact that, in recent days, the actions of the Israeli army have escalated to another level, with the bombardment of Gaza City in pursuit of the openly declared Israeli government policy of clearing the population out of the city and forcing the displacement of a million and a half people within or even outside the territory.

In addition, an engineered, man-made famine is unfolding in Gaza, already affecting 500,000 people. Severe malnutrition is rife, and more than 130 children have starved to death, despite the International Court of Justice’s provisional findings in February 2024 in the case brought against Israel, which required all States to take action to ensure that adequate humanitarian supplies reach Gaza. Finally, Israel has blatantly ignored the United Nations General Assembly Resolution of September 18, 2024 calling for an end to its illegal occupation of Gaza and the West Bank, instead doubling down by annexing additional swathes of Palestinian territory.

While noting the European Commission’s newly announced proposals for limited measures against Israel, our conviction is that the EU’s institutions and its Member States must act far more decisively to uphold international law and protect human rights, notably by suspending the EU-Israel Association Agreement, ceasing the export and import of arms and military equipment, banning imports from Israel’s illegal settlements, restricting access to EU co-financed programmes, and urging Israel’s other key trade partners, including in the Global South, to follow suit. They must also impose immediate targeted sanctions on Israel’s political and military leadership and all those complicit in and responsible for war crimes, ensuring accountability.

In addition, we urge the 13 EU Member States that have not yet done so to join both the 147 UN Member States who have already recognised the State of Palestine, and those who have announced they will do so at the ongoing United Nations General Assembly meeting, including France, Belgium, Malta, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia. Furthermore, the EU must demonstrate political and diplomatic leadership within all UN bodies and in partnerships with the Global South, Arab States and regional powers, to pressure Israel into compliance with its international obligations.

It must also support and strengthen the Global Alliance for the Implementation of the Two-State Solution, the key platform for a sustainable political solution allowing Palestinians and Israelis to coexist in peace and security, and demand that the US rescind decisions preventing official representatives of Palestine and the UN from engaging in dialogue at the United Nations General Assembly.

The heinous attacks of 7 October 2023 by Hamas and others against Israeli citizens, along with the continuing detention of hostages, can never justify the retribution wreaked on Gaza, which is becoming the graveyard of international law and universal human rights. Reckless military assaults of the type committed by Israel on the sovereign territory of Qatar, a key player in ceasefire talks, together with the lack of effective action, will condemn generations of both Palestinians and Israelis to perpetual suffering and continue to destabilise the region and beyond. It is incumbent on all of us, as global citizens, to demand from our leaders nothing less than the full application of international law. The time to act is now.

The full list of signatories of this letter can be viewed here.  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PtJjleD98TAgNh2RKNeqilQBLGks1zOF/view

https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2025/9/17/as-its-former-ambassadors-we-urge-the-eu-to-sanction-israel-now 

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