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| Some 342 civilians have been killed in the attacks, with children, women and the elderly accounting for the majority of the victims. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/11/23/israel-has-violated-gaza-truce-nearly-500-times-in-44-days-killed-hundreds |
letter I just sent to my elected leaders
Dear America-
Actually ending the Israel/Palestine conflict would be a very
good thing indeed, for everyone's sake.
Terrorism and armed violence of any type are totally
counterproductive. International law, cooperation, and full
respect for The Universal Declaration of Human Rights are the best
way forward, for everyone's sake.
Golden Rule thinking- scorn violence. So please stop arming and empowering sovereign Israel's ongoing crimes against humanity.
"ISRAEL SAYS" is not God talking. "ISRAEL SAYS" is the word salad of talented paid professional propagandists aiming to undermine American support for real freedom and justice for the native non-Jewish people of historic Palestine.
Palestine is a memory for many and a dream of better days to come
for many many more. But it is not a sovereign nation state at this
point in time. Will it ever be? Or will it continue to be an
excuse for escalating global war, with state sponsored terrorism
polluting every landscape and conversation...
Israel has been using HAMAS like a tool to accomplish so much
more than it can otherwise, ushering in years of hell for the
people of Palestine. HAMAS disarming is a good thing, and HAMAS
staying far far away from any UNRWA schools, health centers, or
aid distribution is imperative.
Zionists are banking on America blaming the supporters of
Palestine for the carnage and suffering in Gaza. Stymie them-
Refuse to be a weapon in Israel's extensive arsenal. Empower
goodness and decency instead.
America should be funding UNRWA fully, and America should be listening to the people of Palestine who sincerely care about establishing the sovereign rule of fair and just laws.
This Thanksgiving week I give thanks for all that we Americans
have- the job opportunities, the legal respect, the freedom of and
from religion, the food, the fresh air and parks, the arts and
museums, libraries, schools, professional standards...etc... and I
am mindful it could disappear in a blink. We need to appreciate,
protect, and invest in what is good and right.
Sincerely,
Anne Selden Annab
NOTES https://anniesnewletters.blogspot.com/search/label/Notes
UNRWA remains one of the largest providers of emergency learning and psychosocial support across Gaza #UNRWAworks
Life in Gaza 2025 photo posted by Palestinian Journalist Motasem A Dalloul
COSTS of WAR: "The “Military-Industrial Complex” is enmeshed with Silicon Valley. A growing portion of Pentagon spending goes to large tech firms..."
“States clearly operate in ways that terrify,” Elden said. “The terrorism of non-state actors is a very small proportion of terrorism taken as a whole, with states having killed far more than those who oppose them.” A large body of research supports this claim.... Daniel Mendiola in The Guardian
Palestinian Christian youth in the town of Mi’ilya معليّا gathered to decorate the courtyard of Lady of the Annunciation Church with the Christmas tree and nativity scene, preparing for the Christmas season
Nadeen Ayoub: “There hasn't been another Miss Palestine since 2022 because of the genocide,” she says. “After Miss Earth, I was supposed go to Miss Universe. But I postponed it because I did not want to go when genocide was happening. I wanted to focus more on staying behind the scenes because the spotlight was supposed to be on the people in Palestine who are suffering, rather than me.”
Israel needs to face accountability for our genocide. And so does the US. The international community allowed all of this to happen. We must not look away or move on
"Palestinians in Gaza were bombed, then forcibly displaced, then
deliberately starved. More than 68,000 people were killed, a third
of them children and women. This number might be much higher, with
tens of thousands more who are still missing. Hundreds of
thousands were injured. Hospitals and journalists were
systematically targeted..." Israel needs to face
accountability for our genocide. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/nov/18/israel-accountability-gaza-genocide
Resolution 2803 (2025) Adopted by the Security Council at its 10046th meeting, on 17 November 2025 & The full text of Trump's 20-point plan to end the war in Gaza 29 September 2025
‘They have total impunity’: West Bank settler violence surges after Gaza ceasefire UN logs 260 attacks in October alone, its highest monthly tally, as settlers attack farmers and burn olive trees
Mosab Abu Toha: "Today i turn 33. I was born in a refugee camp called al-Shati Camp, or Beach Camp, in Gaza City. This photo was taken in March 2022 on the beach of Beit Lahia, north Gaza. I lived in Beit Lahia, the city of Strawberries, from the age of 8 until I was forced out of Gaza. Beit Lahia was where I got married, where I became a father. It’s where I started writing. It’s where I started the Edward Said Public Library. Where I lived in Beit Lahia was never far from the sea. Everything felt close: the strawberry fields, the shoreline, and the schools where I once studied and later taught. Even Yaffa, the city from which my grandparents and great-grandparents were expelled in 1948, was not far, only forty-three miles away. Yet the cruelty of this world has made it impossible for me to return to, or even visit, the city of my family...."
"The Israeli Knesset – which recently voted to annex the West Bank – adopted legislation in 2024 that forcibly removed UNRWA international staff from the occupied Palestinian territory and blocked the entry of our supplies into Gaza. A virulent disinformation campaign has tarnished the Agency’s reputation and strangled funding for our vital work...
The Israeli Knesset – which recently voted to annex the West Bank – adopted legislation in 2024 that forcibly removed UNRWA international staff from the occupied Palestinian territory and blocked the entry of our supplies into Gaza.
A virulent disinformation campaign has tarnished the Agency’s reputation and strangled funding for our vital work.
This September, the United Nations Commission of Inquiry on the occupied Palestinian territory, found that the laws adopted by the Knesset to cripple UNRWA’s operations, and the establishment of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, were calculated to block lifesaving aid and create “unlivable conditions of life” leading to the physical destruction of Palestinians in Gaza – a genocidal act.
In October, the International Court of Justice found that Israel is obliged to lift restrictions on UNRWA’s operations, and to agree to, and facilitate, the Agency’s relief efforts.
The Court recognized the unique and sustained connection between the Agency’s mandate and the realization of human rights for the Palestinian people, including the right to self-determination.
In short, safeguarding UNRWA’s mandate and operations is required under international law; it is vital to the survival of millions of Palestinians; and it is essential for a political solution.
"Good morning from Gaza, where mothers wake before the sun to brush away yesterday’s pain and braid hope into their daughters’ hair" Maha Hussaini of Palestine
Mar Saba is considered one of the oldest monasteries in the world. It was the home of Saba the Sanctified, John of Damascus, and countless martyrs. It is located in the Bethlehem Governate of the State of Palestine
"Israel is blocking shelter materials into Gaza while tents are flooded and temperatures drop. They’re preventing the clearance of their unexploded bombs that continue to kill and maim children. They’re not allowing enough food to a starved population. The genocide isn’t over." Assal Rad
It’s cold and wet in Gaza. Displaced people are now facing a harsh winter without the basics to protect them from the rain & cold. A misery on top of misery. Fragile shelters quickly flood, soaking people’s belongings. More shelter supplies are urgently needed for the people of Gaza. UNRWA has them outside, waiting for the green light. Let us bring them in. — @UNLazzarini
"Home is everything. Everything—safety, comfort." Shamali Shamali, in The New Yorker - November 11, 2025
Guardian’s former Gaza correspondent named young journalist of the year in UK awards Malak A Tantesh, 20, ‘showed immense talent and bravery’, said judges at Media Freedom awards in London
Israel breaching international law by limiting Gaza aid, says Unrwa official - Natalie Boucly says supplies are ready but only about half of what is needed is getting into territory
H.Res.876 formally recognizes Israel’s atrocities against Palestinians in Gaza as constituting the crime of genocide and calls on the US to uphold its responsibilities under international and US law to prevent and punish this crime.
Aid still woefully short of Gaza needs as heavy rains, winter approach- UNRWA slams Israel for crippling Gaza efforts. Despite the ceasefire mandating the passage of humanitarian aid, only a fraction of that needed for the population has been let in by Israel.
"... Children ran barefoot through the storm, wearing thin summer clothes in winter rain, not with the wild beauty poets imagine, but with the quiet tragedy of a people trapped in their fourth season of exile. Their tents sagged under the downpour, the earth beneath them dissolving into mud, and because the homes that once held them are now dust, the sky itself has become their only roof. A roof that bleeds cold, punishes bone, and spares no heart beneath it. This city has become the throne of eternal grief.... One day, perhaps, the scribes of some future scripture will write: Gaza, the land where the forsaken walked, where angels wept, and where even storms remembered to grieve." Dr. Ezzideen
" ... It is a responsibility. A responsibility for them to speak as they suffer, a responsibility for me to carry their story, and a responsibility, ah, what a responsibility, for you to take action. Yes, it is your money that is killing us and funding our murderers and oppressors. It is your governments that are protecting our slaughterers." Mosab Abu Toha
moh.art_ "To the wonderful Miss Rachel, From the hearts of the children of Gaza and everyone who still believes in hope — thank you. You are not only a teacher or a creator, but a mother to every child, spreading joy and strength where pain lives. The dress you wore, made from the drawings of Gaza’s children, is more than fabric — it is a message of love, resilience, and peace from small hearts that still dare to dream...."
"... It didn’t happen by accident. It’s the product of a deliberate and systematic assault on knowledge by some of the richest people on Earth. Preventing climate breakdown means protecting ourselves from the storm of lies."
“The US administration, they are supporting the rule of the jungle, not the rule of law,” he said. “And what’s going on, globally speaking, is a war between the rule of the jungle and the rule of law.” Shawan Jabarin of PALESTINE- general director of Al-Haq . Al-Haq has documented Israel’s human rights abuses in Palestine for half a century. Alongside other organizations that the US has also sanctioned – Al Mezan Center for Human Rights, the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights, and Addameer, which is focused on the rights of Palestinian prisoners and detainees – the group played a key role in demanding and later supporting the ICC’s investigation.
UNRWA’s mandate and operations is vital to the survival of millions of Palestinians and essential for a much-needed political solution... tragically for all there are ongoing disinformation attacks that aim to discredit and dismantle the Agency.
Al-Damun الدامون, a Palestinian village near Acre, had about 100 Catholic residents. Its people were expelled in 1948 [by Israelis], and the church was erased [by Israelis]
UNRWA has the capacity and expertise to support a postwar Gaza. We want to help make this peace work - Philippe Lazzarini in The Guardian
Young lives cut short on an unimaginable scale: the 18,457 children on Gaza’s list of war dead- Many of the children who survived attacks have life-changing wounds... More than 40,000 children have been injured in the war, according to the UN. Gaza is now home to more child amputees than any other place in the world.
Lilies of Gaza – Women Artists in Times of War
LA Times: In the West Bank’s last Christian village, faith, fear and an uncertain future
Torture in Israeli prisons rose sharply during war, says freed Palestinian author - Nasser Abu Srour says prisons became like ‘another front’ in Gaza conflict and tells of struggle to adjust to life outside
Israel’s underground jail, where Palestinians are held without charge and never see daylight. Exclusive: Detainees at Rakefet include nurse and teenager who have been deprived of natural light since January
‘Israel has made clear it wants to commit genocide’ ‘Israel has made clear it wants to commit genocide’: Ex-UNRWA official Chris Gunness, a former spokesperson for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), says the Israeli government is not allowing critical aid into Gaza because it wants to continue its genocidal policies against Palestinians. “There is a litany of – quite frankly – fascistic pretexts” for Israel to maintain its restrictions on humanitarian assistance, Gunness told Al Jazeera. “Let’s be clear on the big picture: Israel has made it clear that it wants to commit a genocide against the Palestinians, it wants to ethnically-cleanse them, and it wants to starve them,” he said, noting that there are millions of aid items waiting to be brought into the enclave. “The big picture is that the reason these items are not being let in … is that there is a genocide going on, there is a collective punishment, there is ethnic cleansing, and there’s a policy of starvation.”
Talbiya الطالبية was a Palestinian neighborhood in Jerusalem, built in the 1920s by wealthy Palestinian Christian families. In 1948, its residents were forcibly displaced and their homes were seized by Zionist leaders including Golda Meir who took over the house of Hanna Bisharat
Gaza’s young artist turn war trauma into art- 16-year-old Yara Youssef Abu Kweik is pouring her emotions into her art. She narrates her story.
The Guardian’s view on Gaza’s future: the ceasefire brought relief, but the world must not look away now. Palestinians are being born amid the rubble. They need not only immediate relief but long-term justice
“What does it say about these times that the world trusts Ms. Rachel more than the New York Times?” Mo Amer in The New Yorker
“My journey in politics began with Palestine... We said we cared about freedom, cared about justice, we cared about safety, we cared about peace, and yet we did not dare to apply those things to Palestine...” — The Mayor of New York City Zohran Mamdani
"States owe you rights not bruises" Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur oPt
According to the United Nations Satellite Centre, around 81% of all structures in Gaza are damaged...
‘They’re forcing us to gain weight’: Select foods allowed in Gaza as essentials remain missing Luxuries flood Gaza shelves, while vital foods and medicines remain scarce or banned
GLAMOUR: Ms. Rachel’s Dress at the Glamour Women of the Year 2025 Awards Has a Special Meaning
Israeli forces intentionally targeted Palestinian farmers working in the few agricultural areas that had not yet been destroyed in Gaza, using airstrikes, direct gunfire, and repeated shelling. This turned farmlands into high-risk zones where the simple act of trying to secure food became a deadly gamble.
Good morning, world… Come, let us tell you about Gaza: "The war hasn’t stopped—it has only changed its shape..." Sameh Ahmed
NPR: Despite a ceasefire, Israel has demolished villages in southern Lebanon
Dear America- Israel has a right to exist, but Israel has no right to starve and displace the men, women and children of historic Palestine.
The vast majority of Americans are not wealthy & the taxes that We The People pay are being diverted into funding religious bigotry and terror via Israel's cruel war on the native non-Jewish men, women, and children of historic Palestine. HAMAS cruelty and stupidity echoes Zionist cruelty and stupidity and on and on it goes. Neither approach will build peace or security.
The weapons industry and a global war machine- AND INJUSTICE- burgeon with American tax payer funds.
Violence is a problem- not the answer.
STOP THE SIEGE- stop funding crazy cruel Israeli schemes & the forced displacement, imprisonment, starvation, torture, and killing of human beings in Gaza and Palestine
"Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world..." https://www.un.org/en/about-us/universal-declaration-of-human-rights
