Urgent health update: Consequences of war on Gaza, the West Bank/East Jerusalem, and Lebanon - June 13, 2026
Action alerts
1. Tell your Congressperson to stop supporting Israeli escalation of attacks in the West Bank. here
2. Demand Congress reject expansion of US-Israeli military cooperation! The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) is authorizing a melding of the US-Israeli military-industrial complex, including co-production of weapons, AI coordination, and more, which will make US military support for Israel almost impossible to end. here
3. Join the Next250 National Mobilization in Washington DC on Saturday, June 27, 11am. This gathering of 80+ national and local organizations brings together movement leaders, artists, youth, labor, faith communities, educators and advocates working across boundaries to declare not only what we are fighting against, but what we are building together. here
4. Join health workers, activists, and organizations worldwide to demand the suspension of the Israeli Medical Association from the World Medical Association. The Israeli Medical Association (IMA) has remained silent as Palestinian health workers were targeted amid the genocide in Gaza and ethnic cleansing in the West Bank, endorsing Israel's policies. here
Webinars
In case you missed the CUGH 5/9 Webinar: Stopping the Targeted Killing of Healthcare Workers and First Responders in the Middle East, you can still watch it online. Presentations by Dr. Eveline Hitti, Dr. Ahmed Alfarra, Naji Abbas, Dr. Thaer Ahmad, and Zaina Khodr were fantastic. Especially notable was Dr. Hitti’s explanation of the different modes of Israeli attacks on health care and how they are being repeated in Lebanon (approx. 4 minutes in). This webinar is the second in a series held by Consortium of Universities for Global Health in collaboration with Dr. Ruth Gibson (Stanford). here
SAVE THE DATE: July 12, 2026, 10 am Pacific, 1 pm Eastern, Health Advisory Council webinar on Palantir and its encroaching influence on health care. Official info and registration coming. Please watch this informative video about how Palantir functions and its fascist origins: here
Report
Amnesty International has accused Israel of a state-driven campaign of ethnic cleansing targeting Palestinian Bedouins in the occupied West Bank and committing the crime against humanity of forcible transfer. here
Journal articles
Critics are calling for the Israeli Medical Association be suspended from the World Medical Association over its stance on Gaza. here
Response to a critique of a Lancet report: author presents arguments exemplifying genocide denial and the mechanisms of selective moral disengagement. “Selective moral disengagement occurs when, unlike for the suffering of so-called deserving victims, the suffering of so-called undeserving victims, in this case Palestinian civilians and health workers and journalists in Gaza, is not only denied, but also minimised, justified, and blamed on the victims themselves.” here
GAZA
Israel continues to break all “ceasefire” provisions (not to mention international and humanitarian law) by attacking tent camps, homes, agricultural lands, infrastructure and public gathering places, and expanding the amount of the Strip under its military rule. After briefly reopening, Israel closed the Zikim crossing on 5/24, leaving the Kerem Shalom crossing as the only aid entry point. 6/7, after an Iranian attack, they closed that entry too, but reopened it 2 days later. New border protocols have further slowed the entry of supplies, as urgently needed food, shelter, medicine, fuel, and repair items are restricted, and the water and sanitation crises are at a breaking point.
· 5/20-6/3: Israel killed 45 Palestinians and injured 254.
· Since the 10/10 “ceasefire,” 936 Palestinians killed and 2,903 injured.
· Since 10/07/2023: 72,945+ killed Palestinians killed and 173,011+ injured.
· For more information on Gaza :here
· A new report by the UN says armed groups and police units have beaten, maimed, and publicly executed dozens of Palestinians. The UN documented hundreds of cases of extrajudicial punishment, including “kneecapping, bone-breaking with metal pipes or cement bricks and beatings.” Al Jazeera has reported that certain armed groups in Gaza have been known to serve as Israeli agents, and that Israel has provided weapons and other assistance for these groups to oppose Hamas.
Israeli attacks
· 5/30, Israeli drone strike killed Dr. Jamal Yousef Abu-Oun, the head of the anesthesia department at Al-Yafa Medical Hospital, in Deir al-Balah. (OCHAOPT & Palestine Chronicle 5/30)
· 5/31, Israeli helicopters shelled a group of civilians at Gaza Port, killing 2 and wounding 25.
· 6/1, Israeli forces killed 2 and injured 40 across Gaza.
· 6/1, Israeli forces detained a Palestinian medical student from Gaza after he left via the Kerem Shalom crossing en route to Italy to continue his studies. Mahmoud Al-Najjar was stopped shortly after departure and taken to an unknown location, with no information about his fate, despite having received approval to travel and being expected at Italy’s Tor Vergata University to pursue medical specialization. He is the sole survivor of an Israeli strike on his home in Jabalia 10/ 2024 that killed his wife, 4 children, and other relatives. (Drop Site 6/2)
· 6/2, Israeli forces killed 1 and injured 9 across Gaza.
· 6/3, Israeli drone strike in the Maghazi refugee camp killed 1 and injured others, while another drone-fired missile in the Al-Maghraqa area killed 1.
· 6/4, Israeli airstrikes on Gaza City killed 9 and injured 15. The strikes hit homes while families were sleeping in Al-Shati refugee camp, the Karama neighborhood, Tel al-Hawa, and Sheikh Radwan.
· 6/4, According to Gaza health officials, eleven people, including women and children, were killed in Israeli strikes over a 24-hour period, while dozens more were injured. Palestinian media reported that one attack in Gaza City killed five members of the same family after multiple apartments were struck simultaneously. here
· 6/5, Israeli forces bombed a tent west of Khan Younis at 4 am, killing an 18-year-old and injuring his grandfather; another person was killed and others wounded in a strike on a petrol station in Gaza City; and 5 were wounded in a strike on a residential building in Tel al-Hawa.
· 6/6, an Israeli strike on a tent sheltering displaced families west of Gaza City killed 7 and wounded 15. A child was receiving treatment after being shot in the head and arm by Israeli sniper fire in the Al-Mahatta area east of Gaza City.
· 6/7, Israeli attacks killed at least 13 and wounded 35 others. Israeli airstrike on a police post in Al-Mawasi killed 5 people and injured 17; 4 were in a vehicle in Gaza City.
· 6/7, Israeli naval vessels opened machine gun fire on a fishing boat off the coast of Deir el-Balah in central Gaza, killing a 16-year-old fisherman. At least 238 fishermen have been killed by Israel since 10/2023, with more than 20 killed or detained since the ceasefire began. Israel has banned the entry of fishing equipment into Gaza since 10/2023, crippling a sector that once supported roughly 5,000 fishermen, with total losses estimated at over $70 million and more than 90% of fishing infrastructure destroyed. (Drop Site 6/8)
· 6/8, Israeli strikes on Jabalia killed 3, while 2 were killed and several injured in al-Attar west of Khan Younis. A drone strike on a vehicle in Khan Younis wounded 3, and several more were injured when Israeli aircraft struck Gaza City.
· 6/9, Israeli soldiers detained 7 Red Crescent ambulance workers as they were working on Salah al-Din Street. 5 of the medics were released after questioning, while 2 medics’ whereabouts remained unknown. One was released on 6/11, while the other is presumably still being held by armed militias operating under Israeli protection. (Drop Site 6/9)
· 6/4, more than 9,500 Palestinians have gone missing since the start of the war among them approximately 4,700 women and children, Gaza-based human rights organization Al-Damir reported. More than 8,100 are believed trapped under the rubble of destroyed buildings, while over 800 were detained by Israeli forces at military checkpoints during displacement between northern and southern Gaza, a violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention. Israel bears full responsibility as the occupying power for disclosing the fate of the missing. (Drop Site 6/4)
· 6/11, Palestine Red Crescent Society said two of its medics remain missing after armed militias intercepted two PRCS ambulances on Salah al-Din Street in southern Gaza while the crews were responding to a humanitarian call. Most crew members were released following field interrogation, but the whereabouts of the two medics remain unknown. PRCS held the Israeli occupation authorities fully responsible, and called for the medics’ immediate and unconditional release. (Drop Site 6/11)
Aid & Incoming Supplies
· May, 51,900 pallets of aid were offloaded at the Kerem Shalom and Zikim crossings for collection, a small increase compared to March and April, but significantly lower than levels recorded in January and February. See the online UN 2720 Mechanism Dashboard.
· 5/24 closure of Zikim forced all cargo through Kerem Shalom. 5/29, Israeli authorities closed the Jordan River Crossing after fire broke out on the Israeli side, slowing access. 5/18-31, only half of all aid trucks from Egypt could offload at Kerem Shalom.
· Gaza Chamber of Commerce records the very low number of 708 private-sector truckloads entered Gaza between 5/25-31. 31% carried non-essential items (coffee, candies, etc.). Of those carrying essential items, the vast majority carried fresh or frozen food, staples and cooking gas. Only 13% carried hygiene items, shelter materials, educational supplies, and animal feed. Only 1 truck carried medical supplies.
· 5/25-31, food and nonfood prices remained relatively stable, except for eggs which experienced a 22% decline. However, prices still represent a 235% increase from prior to 10/2023, and an 88% increase since the beginning of the war against Iran.
· Since the “ceasefire,” only 36.3% of the agreed volume of aid and commercial trucks and 14.8% of fuel deliveries have entered Gaza. At the Rafah crossing, only 34.5% of scheduled travelers have crossed. (DropSite 6/8)
Health & Hospitals
· Health risks posed by pests and rodents in Gaza remain high as restrictions remain on access to landfills and the import of critically needed items.
· 95 patients (5 children) and 138 caregivers were medically evacuated to Egypt via Rafah Crossing. 24 EMT personnel entered Gaza (1 denied) and 38 left. 66 international staff are supporting 35 EMTs across 21 partners.
· More than 16,500 Palestinians requiring medical treatment abroad are prevented by Israel from leaving, despite the “ceasefire” of October, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. They warned that Israel was “killing patients with delays” by limiting Rafah crossing access to 3 days per week and allocating just 1 day weekly for medical evacuations at the Karem Abu Salem crossing. Health Undersecretary Maher Shamia called on human rights organizations to pressure Israel to allow free movement, adding that many patients could be treated locally if Israel ceased blocking reconstruction of the healthcare infrastructure they systematically destroyed. (DropSite, 6/10)
· UNRWA remains the largest health provider, delivering 21% of all health services through its 10 health centers and 28 medical points. Across all Health Cluster partners, severe shortages of dressing supplies, dental and rehabilitation materials, and generator maintenance inputs are constraining operations.
· 5/31, Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, the only government hospital serving central Gaza, warned its healthcare system is approaching collapse after the failure of a fourth electricity generator, threatening the lives of hundreds of patients and wounded Palestinians who depend on its services. The worsening power crisis has already forced the shutdown of operating rooms and caused the suspension of more than half of the medical services provided by the facility. Hospital officials warned that dialysis units, neonatal care departments, intensive care units, and medical laboratories could cease functioning at any moment. (Palestine Chronicle 5/31, Mondoweiss 6/5)
· 6/3, Israeli authorities transferred detained Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya to solitary confinement at Nafha Prison following his legal challenge to an extension of his detention. His lawyer decried the move as punitive, saying it has left Abu Safiya without necessary medical treatment. Healthcare Workers Watch reports at least 83 Palestinian healthcare workers are currently held by Israel, including 75 from Gaza. (DropSite 6/5, here)
· 6/9, Gaza Health Ministry called for the release of two Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance drivers allegedly detained by Israeli-backed militias while carrying out humanitarian work. According to reports, seven ambulance workers were initially detained at checkpoints on Salah al-Din Road, with five later released. The incident reflects the growing presence of armed groups in Gaza that receive Israeli support and have increasingly clashed with Hamas. here
· For more information, see the online Heath Cluster Dashboard.
Pests, Rodents & Sanitation
· 4/26-5/30, infectious diseases accounted for 20% of consults. Acute respiratory infections remained the leading cause of morbidity (30%), followed by ectoparasitic and other skin diseases (48%), and acute watery diarrhea (20%).
· Incidents were reported across 29 displacement sites in Khan Younis, Deir al Balah, and Gaza city, with rodent and insect infestations identified as the most critical concern. Affected people face increased risks such as bites, skin infections, psychosocial distress, and damage to shelters and belongings. Reports highlight repeated cases of children being bitten during sleep, while overcrowding, damaged shelters, and poor waste management are worsening conditions. Site Management partners are responding with cleaning materials, rubble removal, fumigation, rodent control, waste management support, and complementary shelter assistance. (OCHAOPT & here
· Launched 5/17, WASH partners continue their Pest Control Plan activities to address infestations of rodents and ectoparasites. Treatment has started at 1,180 priority locations, including areas around hospitals, food storage facilities, sewage channels, lagoons, shelters, and temporary dumping sites, in coordination with community leaders and solid waste actors. Implementation will require the regular entry of pesticides.
· Solid waste management remains a significant challenge, as it continues to rely on temporary dump sites near displacement areas, increasing public health risks for affected populations. Since early March, WASH partners removed 100,000 cubic meters of waste from the Firas Market in Gaza City to a dump site in Abu Jarad which still lacks materials that have been “approved” but not yet arrived. Sanitation partners stress the need to access Gaza’s landfills behind Israeli lines and to import equipment needed to clear explosive ordnance and remove waste and rubble.
Water & Sanitation
· UNICEF warns that water shortages force families in Gaza to choose between drinking, hygiene and disease prevention. Most households do not meet the minimum of 6 liters of drinking/ cooking water per person per day. Water production in Gaza dropped by about 20% in May compared with two months earlier, largely due to shortages of chemicals and spare parts.
· More than 1 million children in Gaza survive on roughly 6 liters of water per day—a fraction of the global standard—as infrastructure destruction and the ongoing Israeli blockade continue to devastate water supplies. (DropSite, 6/2, 6/3)
· Israeli air strikes damaged critical water and sanitation infrastructure: 5/23, they hit the Emirati carrier line and 5/28 damaged lines serving Al-Aqsa Hospital. Repair remains slow due to shortages of materials such as pipes and fittings.
· Since mid-May, funding shortfalls forced 4 partners to begin phase-out of water trucking activities, leaving 330,000 people at 250 sites without drinking water.
· There is a severe sanitation crisis in Gaza's tent camps, where many displaced families have constructed makeshift toilets inside their tents to avoid unsafe and overcrowded communal facilities. With much of Gaza's sewage infrastructure destroyed, residents face foul odors, disease risks, and degrading living conditions while struggling to obtain even basic sanitation supplies. One Gazan living in a tent camp in Khan Younis described having a toilet inside of his family’s tent: “I did not want the kids and my wife to use any public toilet. It is humiliating. The situation is revolting, but at least it has more dignity.” here
Food & Nutrition
· In May, partners distributed food parcels assistance to 205,000 households (820,000 people) as part of the monthly distribution. Each family received 2 parcels, a 25 kilos of flour, and 2.5 kilos of high energy biscuits, covering 75% of the minimum caloric needs.
· As of 5/28, 23 partners delivered 678,000 meals through 80 kitchens daily to 1,107 locations, down from 1.5 million daily meals in mid-March. While this reflects a shift from in-kind assistance to cash and livelihood support to re-activate commerce, the private sector does not yet offer enough fresh, diverse and affordable food to offset the reduction, which is driven mostly by underfunding.
· During the first half of May, 37,792 children <5 were screened for acute malnutrition, with 2,042 (over 5%) requiring treatment, including 737 (almost 2%) with severe acute malnutrition.
· 29,914 pregnant and breastfeeding women (PBW) were screened, with 1,092 (over 3.5 %) admitted for treatment. 29,538 caregivers were counselled on emergency feeding of infants and young children.
· 7 infants were admitted for complications related to poor growth. 37 severely malnourished children <5 were admitted to stabilization centers, as well as 2 children over 5 years, with severe wasting or nutritional edema requiring specialized inpatient treatment.
· Agricultural recovery interventions, including livestock support and agricultural asset rehabilitation, are being suspended or scaled down due to funding shortfalls.
Shelter & Displacement
· Partners installed 131 emergency shelter units in Gaza and Khan Younis using Shelter Cluster Emergency Shelter Kit designs and specifications. In addition, since January, UNDP brought in 2,954 Relief Housing Units (RHUs) of which 1,350 have been installed at multiple sites, including health and education facilities. Installation was completed at 4 displacement sites and continues at 3 others. Transitioning from tents to improved emergency shelter units and repaired homes enhances protection and living conditions, including better access to services such as water. Concerns persist regarding overheating of RHUs during the summer, and some sites remain vulnerable to flooding.
· Shelter response capacity remains constrained by the near depletion of shelter and essential items stocks, restrictions on the entry of critical materials (including tents, emergency shelter kits, toolkits, timber, plywood, nails, and other construction materials), limited access due to insecurity, and ongoing supply chain disruptions. Funding shortfalls, combined with continuing displacement, continue to limit response. Partners are able to sustain operations in less than 33% (505 of 1,600) of displacement sites; of these, just 139 sites have benefited from site improvements.
· 5/28, an air strike hit a residential area in Deir al Balah, damaging housing. Another hit the rooftop of a UN school building in An Nuseirat on 5/31.
· For more information, see the Shelter Cluster website.
Mines & Unexploded Ordnance
· In the last weeks of May, partners made 45 explosive hazard assessments in support of debris removal and other activities, and 4 inter-agency missions. Education activities reached more than 16,000 people, including over 9,000 children during the reporting period.
· Since 10/2023, 504 explosive ordnance accidents have been recorded, leading to 244 deaths and 1,036 injuries.
Education
· High school final examinations for 30,000 students (of 34,000 eligible) are scheduled to begin on 5/20 at 100 TLSs.
Environmental degradation
· Israeli war on Gaza generated an estimated 33.2 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions—comparable to the annual emissions of some countries. About 1.9 million tons were linked directly to Israeli military operations and the remainder associated with debris removal and future reconstruction. In a joint statement marking World Environment Day: Gaza is facing a severe environmental collapse, citing the destruction of more than 90% of wastewater infrastructure, the accumulation of around 710,000 tons of household waste and more than 60 million tons of rubble from the destruction of over 330,000 housing units. The statement also cited a recent UNOSAT report showing that about 86% of Gaza’s agricultural land had been damaged or destroyed by the end of June 2025, rising to 94% in northern Gaza. The agencies further reported a rise in Israeli environmental violations in the occupied West Bank, with 685 incidents recorded in 2025 compared with 535 in 2024. (Drop Site 6/4)
WEST BANK, INCLUDING EAST JERUSALEM
· 5/19-6/1, Israeli forces or settlers killed 3 Palestinians and injured 70 (9 children). 30 people were wounded in 65 settler attacks which destroyed 350 olive and almond trees, 3 greenhouses, and 80 dunums (20 acres) of agricultural land as well as water infrastructure and other property.
· So far in 2026, more than 950 settler attacks across over 230 communities have resulted in casualties and damage to homes, livelihood, and public infrastructure.
· For more information: here
Israeli attacks
· 6/2, UN experts warned that attacks by settlers in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, carried out “with the support and acquiescence of the Israeli State,” have become a “daily terror in Palestinian lives” and serve as “an instrument of coercion” facilitating “ethnic cleansing.” At least 13 Palestinians were killed and nearly 500 injured in the first five months of 2026 in the occupied West Bank, outpacing figures from previous years. (Drop Site 6/2)
· 5/19, Israeli forces set fire to 3 houses in Jenin camp. They had occupied one as an observation point for about a year.
· 5/19, Israeli training exercise burned a house in Nur Shams camp.
· 5/19, Israeli forces shot and injured a man attempting to enter Tulkarm camp.
· 5/19, armed and masked settlers from a nearby outpost invaded Ma’azi Jaba’ Bedouin community (Jerusalem), damaging a kitchen and fodder storage area.
· 5/20, Israeli authorities demolished without prior notice a concrete and aggregate factory in Kharbatha Bani Hareth (Area C, Ramallah) which was the primary source of support for an extended family of 7 households (36 people, 21 children) and 20 workers.
· 5/20, Israeli authorities demolished 16 structures (11 of which were assistance in response to previous demolitions) in Ein al Hilwa (Tubas), displacing 4 households (19 people, 9 children). All personal belongings and basic household items were destroyed.
· 5/20, Israeli forces installed a new metal gate on the road leading to the Old City of Hebron, restricting access and affecting 130 families.
· 5/20, Israeli forces invading the Hizma/Tublas Bedouin community (Jerusalem) issued demolition orders for residential and livelihood structures. They also searched houses, arresting people and damaging property, and closed roads with earth mounds.
· 5/20, settlers destroyed 2 electric poles, shutting off power to Madama’s (Nablus) only well, serving approximately 2,700 people.
· 5/20, settlers set fire to 2 vehicles in Al Marjameh, Halhul (Hebron), damaging a nearby building, home to 4 families (17 people, 9 children).
· 5/23, settlers set fire to 3 greenhouses and an irrigation network serving 2 families in Qaffin (Tulkarm).
· 5/24, Israeli forces bulldozed and blocked a key access road in Khirbet Atuf (Tubas), damaging water infrastructure for 8 families and 3,000 dunums of agricultural land.
· 5/25, after 8 years of refusing to issue building permits, Israeli authorities demolished 3 structures in Al Bustan, Silwan (East Jerusalem) for lack of permits, displacing 2 households (9 people, 3 children) and affecting another 6 people (4 children). Furniture, household belongings and other property were damaged during the operation, as were surrounding walls and trees.
· 5/26, Israeli forces shot and killed a disabled man near Jenin Camp. The military claimed he threw stones at them, so they shot and killed him.
· 5/27, Israeli forces raiding Beita (Nablus) fired tear gas which ignited a fire inside a Palestinian home, damaging 2 rooms filled with furniture, children’s toys and kitchen supplies.
· 5/31, Israeli authorities forced 13 households (53 people, 17 children) in Qalandiya (Jerusalem) to demolish their homes, displacing them. Demolition orders were first issued in 2011, and residents attempted unsuccessfully for over a decade to obtain building permits.
· 5/31, Israeli forces shot and killed a man from Salem (Nablus) attempting to cross the Barrier in Ar Ram (Jerusalem).
· 5/31, a Palestinian man drove into a group of Israelis at Gush Etzion settlement junction (Bethlehem), injuring 2 girls before being shot and killed by Israeli forces. His body was withheld. Israeli forces closed entrances to towns and villages across Bethlehem, restricting the movement of 200,000 people for 2 hours. They raided the driver’s family home in Hebron.
· 6/1, settlers opened fire on Palestinian homes in Burqa (Nablus), forcing residents to flee.
· 6/5, Israeli troops killed a seven-month-old Palestinian baby in the West Bank and injured one of the child’s parents, despite the family having complied with an order to stop. Soldiers opened fire on a car carrying the infant and his parents in the Tel Rumeida area of Hebron. The baby was evacuated in critical condition to a hospital, where he later died. His parents were also injured. (Guardian 6/6)
· 6/9, Israeli forces carried out raids and arrests across multiple occupied West Bank cities and towns, storming Bethlehem, Tulkarem, and the village of Husan with “heavy machinery.” In another incident, Israeli bulldozers destroyed the main water pipeline east of Tammun town in the Tubas governorate, cutting off water to families, livestock, and crops. (Drop Site 6/9)
Demolitions & Displacement
· 5/19-6/1, Israeli authorities demolished 73 structures for lacking impossible to obtain Israeli-issued building permits. The destruction of 19 homes and 54 livelihood, water, sanitation, and other structures displaced 25 households (126 people, 57 children), 77 in East Jerusalem and 49 in Area C.
· 5/31, Israel extended the military order closing the Tulkarm and Nur Shams refugee camps and surrounding neighborhoods through 7/31/26. More than 33,000 Palestine refugees were again displaced from Tulkarm, Nur Shams and Jenin refugee camps in 01/2025 in the largest and longest West Bank displacement crisis since 1967.
· 5/29, the UN Secretary-General condemned Israel’s decision to convert UNRWA’s Sheikh Jarrah compound in East Jerusalem into a military base. Israel’s action breaches the inviolability of United Nations premises and obstructs UNRWA’s General Assembly mandate. He called for the return of the compound to the UN.
Food & Nutrition
· Economic conditions are significantly worse than prior to 10/2023. World Food Program (WFP) reports an unemployment rate of 30% in the 1st quarter of 2026, more than double the pre-crisis rate. Its impact on household welfare is clear: poverty increased from 12% to 28%; 78% of households report a decline in income; and 60% are unable to meet basic monthly expenses. Rising food and fuel prices, coupled with reduced purchasing power, further strain household resources and coping mechanisms.
· Food consumption declined as well. Households with poor or borderline food consumption increased from 5% in June 2022 to 14% by late 2025. Households report increased reliance on less preferred and less expensive foods, smaller portions, and consuming fewer meals daily to cope with economic hardship.
Health
· More than a third of essential medicines stocked by the Palestinian Health Ministry in the West Bank have completely run out, including 50 of 97 drug types used to treat cancer patients. Health officials warned that more than 4,000 cancer patients and thousands of kidney dialysis patients are at immediate risk, and that around 11,000 surgeries could be delayed due to shortages. The crisis is driven in part by Israel’s withholding of Palestinian tax revenues, compounded by years of underinvestment and mounting debt, with drug suppliers claiming that the Palestinian Authority owes them roughly 1.35 billion shekels (approximately $385 million). (DropSite 6/8, here)
· 6/3, West Bank healthcare workers have gone on strike as Israel’s financial siege guts the Palestinian health sector. As Israel indefinitely withholds Palestinian customs revenues, public hospitals have cut hours and slashed healthcare workers' salaries. Patients are left to navigate a system running on interns and half-capacity labs. here
Prisoners
· Israeli forces arrested four female Palestinian students in a pre-dawn raid on the town of Birzeit, north of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, according to WAFA. The number of Palestinian female detainees is now 89, according to the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society, including three minors, three pregnant prisoners, and 19 held without charge. Israel detained over 41 Palestinians in its overnight arrest campaign across the occupied West Bank on 6/2. (Drop Site 6/2)
LEBANON
· As of 6/11, Israeli attacks on Lebanon since March 2 have killed at least 3,711 people and wounded 11,483.
· “The Word 'Ceasefire' Has Lost Its Meaning”: Lylla Younes on Israel’s Ethnic Cleansing of South Lebanon (Democracy Now!)
· In Lebanon, Israel is using the same strategy as in Gaza and the West Bank: demand the population evacuate, destroy civilian architecture, and make it impossible for residents to ever return. here
· Israeli military has deployed white phosphorus, over populated areas in Lebanon in its battle against Hezbollah, according to experts, aid groups, and visual evidence collected by The New York Times. Distinctive smoke trails from this type of munition were seen as recently as 5/30 in Nabatieh, a city of roughly 40,000, in social media footage verified by The Times, which was filmed as Israeli forces captured Beaufort Castle, a landmark in the area. here
· 5/31, at least 21 people were killed, and 126 wounded in Israeli strikes on Lebanon.
· 5/31 Thirteen healthcare workers were injured on 5/31 in an Israeli airstrike targeting the vicinity of Hiram Hospital in Lebanon’s southern city of Tyre. The bombardment also caused “severe damage after the hospital sustained damage in earlier Israel attacks,” the Lebanese Health Ministry said. The Ministry called on the international community to “put an end to the escalating Israeli attacks, which are expanding without regard for international humanitarian law, UN resolutions, and international norms.” (Middle East Monitor 5/31, Drop Site 6/11)
· 6/1, Israeli strikes across southern Lebanon killed 6, including a strike on Zebdine that killed 2 men. 1 was killed in a strike on Shahabiya, while a drone strike on a car on the Zefta-Nabatieh highway near an ambulance point killed the driver and injured a paramedic. A drone strike killed 2 in their vehicle in Breqaa, while another was killed in a strike on Toul. 6/1, the Israeli military issued forced displacement orders to residents of a total of 16 towns and villages across southern Lebanon.
· 6/1, UN Security Council held an emergency meeting on Israel’s expanded military offensive, according to AFP. The meeting was requested by France, whose President Emmanuel Macron said “nothing justifies the major escalation underway.”
· 6/1, an Israeli strike near Tyre’s Jabal Amel Hospital killed 4 and wounded 127, including 39 members of the hospital’s medical, nursing, and administrative staff. The attack destroyed a nearby building, knocking out the facility’s power, oxygen, and intensive care systems, and killing some ICU patients as life-sustaining equipment went offline. Jabal Amel was among the last hospitals in southern Lebanon still providing intensive care, surgery, and pediatric services.
· 6/1-2, wave of strikes in the Bint Jbeil area killed 5 and injured 48 others, including a child and 6 medical staff at Tibnin Government Hospital. The hospital was also damaged, in the repeated Israeli strikes on medical facilities.
· 6/2, Israeli attacks across southern Lebanon killed 8, including two Syrian workers at a plant nursery in Jibchit, and 2 killed in drone strikes on a motorcycle and a car. Israeli warplanes also struck a Lebanese civil defense center in Kfarsir. The Israeli military issued a renewed forced displacement order for the southern city of Nabatieh.
· 6/2, Lebanese civil defense teams recovered 6 bodies and rescued 3 survivors from the rubble of a residential building in Marwaniyah, Sidon.
· 6/2, Casualty toll from a strike near Tyre’s Jabal Amel Hospital rose on 6/2 to at least four killed and 127 wounded, including 39 members of the hospital’s medical, nursing, and administrative staff. The attack destroyed a nearby building, knocking out the facility’s power, oxygen, and intensive care systems, with journalist Hadi Hoteit reporting the death of some ICU patients after life-sustaining equipment went offline. Jabal Amel was among the last hospitals in southern Lebanon still providing intensive care, surgery, and pediatric services.(Drop Site 6/2)
· 6/3, an Israeli strike on an Al-Risala Association ambulance in the southern town of Shahour killed 2 paramedics and injured a third. Another Al-Risala paramedic was killed in a drone strike in Arab Salim. A Civil Defense team from the Islamic Health Authority was also struck by an Israeli drone while responding to a previous strike in Zebdin, injuring the paramedics. (Drop Site 6/3)
· 6/3, an Israeli airstrike on Zebdine near Nabatieh killed 1 paramedic and wounded another. This was the fifth paramedic killed that day. (Drop Site 5/4)
· 6/5, Israeli attacks killed at least 8 people: 4 were killed in Israeli drone strikes in the south; 2 were killed in vehicles Nabatieh and Kfar Roumman; and 2 were killed on motorcycles in Bint Jbeil and in Deir al-Zahrani.
· Israeli strike on Doueir destroyed a residential building, killing 1 critically wounding 1. In Habboush, two strikes killed two, one of whom was a physician.
· At least 91 medical personnel of the Islamic Health Authority in Lebanon have been killed by Israeli attack. Israeli forces claim, without evidence, that ambulances are being used to transport weapons. Israel has killed over 125 health workers in Lebanon since 3/2. (Drop Site 6/5)
· 6/6, Israel struck a residential building in the town of Saksakiyeh in Lebanon’s Saida district killing 6 people and wounding others. An Israeli drone strike also killed a Lebanese paramedic.
· 6/7, Israeli forces struck the Beirut’s southern suburbs, killing at least 2 people and wounding 11 in strikes on residential apartments.
· 6/8, Israeli warplanes carried out a series of airstrikes across southern Lebanon following Iranian strikes on Israel in response to attacks on Beirut. The strikes hit multiple towns and villages in the Tyre, Zahrani, and Bint Jbeil districts, including al-Samaiyya, Burj al-Shamali, Kfarhouna, Khirbet Dweir, al-Khiraib, and Qalawiyah. At dawn, 4 people were killed in a series of airstrikes on Zefta, including an attack on a shelter.
· 6/9, 13 people were killed and 45 wounded in Israeli attacks on Tyre. The Israeli military carried out a double-tap strike in Sharqiyeh, hitting civil defense workers evacuating an injured person, wounding the 2 rescuers. More than 100 rescuers have been killed in Israeli attacks since 3/2. (Drop Site 6/9, here)
· 6/10, Israeli attacks on Tyre and surrounding areas in southern Lebanon killed 13 people and wounded 15. In Ansarieh, south of Saida, Israeli drones carried out 5 strikes in 45 minutes. The drones target moving vehicles and access roads, hindering rescue efforts. Israeli forces abducted 2 men, a town worker and town council member, in the southern Lebanese town of Kfarshouba as they were pumping water for residents. The Israeli military later confirmed they apprehended “two suspected individuals” who they claim approached soldiers in Lebanese territory, and were taken to Israel for “further questioning.”
· 6/11, Israeli airstrike on a residential building near Hiram Hospital in Tyre killed 1 person and wounded 17, including 10 nurses and hospital staff. The airstrike caused extensive damage to the hospital, including patient rooms and the emergency department, shattering windows and damaging employees’ vehicles.
ISRAEL
· Israel’s High Court of Justice ruled that the government’s blanket ban on visits by the International Committee of the Red Cross to Palestinian prisoners is unlawful and must be revoked. The 10/7/23 ban was challenged by several rights groups. Responding to the ruling, Palestinian Prisoners’ Society head Abdullah Al-Zaghari said the decision would remain “devoid of practical effect” unless it results in the immediate resumption of Red Cross visits and meaningful protections for detainees. He also said the ruling should not serve as a pretext to overlook the Supreme Court’s longstanding role in providing “legal legitimacy” to occupation policies and a system of impunity, subjecting prisoners to starvation, denial of medical treatment, and torture. (DropSite 6/4, PHR-I 6/8, here)
· Three Israeli reservists gave the Associated Press firsthand accounts of permissive rules of engagement along the “yellow line” dividing Gaza, with soldiers authorized to fire on anyone crossing the invisible boundary—including civilians unaware of its location. Strikes, they said, were sometimes called in based on a “hunch” from troops too distant to identify targets. (Drop Site 6/1)
· Faced with a shattered health care system, patients’ survival is dependent on Israel’s tightening restrictions on border crossings. WHO has warned that Israeli forces are no longer only claiming people’s lives through bombs, but are also endangering Palestinians by denying them urgently needed health care services and medication. This is now the status quo for 350,000 chronic patients in Gaza whose health hangs in the balance, conditioned on the fluctuating status of the borders. (Truthout 6/4)
UNITED STATES
· Buried deep inside a 192-page intelligence authorization bill is Section 622, titled “United States-Israel Intelligence Sharing Enhancement.” It would require the president, acting through the director of national intelligence and as necessary the secretary of defense, to “expand and enhance intelligence sharing with the Government of Israel” on a list of subjects that encompasses almost every topic of intelligence interest in the Middle East. here
· 6/2, Dr. Adam Hamawy won the Democratic primary in New Jersey’s 12th congressional district [Trenton], despite an aggressive smear campaign by pro-Israel Democrats due to. Hamawy, a plastic surgeon, volunteered at a Gaza hospital during the war; if elected to Congress, he will presumably join the ‘Squad.’ (Drop Site 6/1 and 6/2) here
· Maryland Break the Bonds Campaign, a local coalition of organizations and activists, announced that the Maryland State Retirement and Pension System has divested roughly 85% of its Israeli bond holdings. The move represents a $62 million in divestment from Israeli sovereign bonds and is believed to be the largest state-level divestment from Israeli bonds thus far.
· Members of the Park Slope Food Coop in Brooklyn voted to boycott about a dozen products from Israel and Israeli settlements in occupied Palestine, capping years of contentious debate. The vote, which took place during a three-hour virtual meeting attended by about 7,000 of the co-operative’s 17,000 members, follows months of dueling campaigning. 67% of voting members supported the boycott. here
· 6/11, A coalition of 62 members of the US Congress said in a letter sent to Marco Rubio that Israel should stop blocking the medical evaluation of Palestinian cancer patients from Gaza to hospitals in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem. (DAWN 6/11)
Universities
· Dr. Mary Bassett chronicles Harvard University’s dismantling of all academic work related to Palestine: here
· Hillel embeds Israeli soldiers on university campuses to promote Israeli propaganda, or hasbara, and counter “anti-Israel activism.” The organization conducts Zionist programming on campus, often featuring active-duty soldiers from the Israeli military and has numerous programs where students go directly to IOF bases and volunteer for the Israeli army. here
· Mahmoud Khalil, the former Columbia student and Palestinian activist targeted for deportation by the Trump administration, will appeal his case to the Supreme Court. here
· A tenured art therapy professor at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) was suspended from teaching and placed under investigation following a student’s complaint about an assigned case study that mentioned violence against Palestinians. here
INTERNATIONAL
· Ten volunteers with the Global Sumud Flotilla, detained in Benghazi, Libya for 11 days while attempting to reach Gaza, are in deteriorating condition after entering a dry hunger and water strike. The group has been held without access to lawyers, embassies, or independent medical teams. Organizations are calling on the Argentine government (one member is an Argentine national), the UN, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and the foreign ministries of all nationalities involved to intervene immediately to prevent irreversible harm. (Drop Site 6/5)
· 6/8, Italian prosecutors opened an investigation into Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir on suspicion of torture and kidnapping of Italian citizens, who were part of the group of activists detained from the Global Sumud Flotilla. The probe follows mounting international backlash over Ben-Gvir’s posting of video showing detained activists kneeling with their hands bound [ed note: ie., being treated like Palestinians]. (Drop Site 6/9)
SOURCES
OCHAOPT, Drop Site, The Crimson, Znetwork, Democracy Now, Haaretz, +972, Palestine Chronicle, Middle East Monitor, Mondoweiss, Truthout, The Guardian, New York Times, Zeteo, DAWN