Urgent Health Update: Consequences of war on Gaza, West Bank/East Jerusalem - August 9, 2025

ACTION ITEMS

1. Flood Congress (again!) with calls demanding an end to starvation, weapons to Israel, and genocide. 8/12, 10am ET/ 7am PT. Sponsors: Adalah Justice Project, US Campaign for Palestinian Rights, JVP, the Institute for Middle East Understanding, and AROC. Register here:

2. Attend the 2025 People’s Conference for Palestine: Gaza is the compass, 8/29-31, in Detroit, MI. Plenaries, workshops, cultural events, and organizing sessions will deepen our strategy, strengthen our unity, and build mass movement for Palestinian liberation in North America. To find out more and to register: here

3. URGENT CALL TO ACTION 

From Doctors Against Genocide (DAG)
Dismantle the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation: Aid Must Not Be a Tool of Genocide

What’s unfolding in Gaza is state-engineered violence disguised as aid.

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), backed by the U.S. and Israel, has turned food distribution into a death trap. Civilians are being shot while trying to collect survival rations in fenced, militarized zones. Over 500 killed and thousands woundedsince May.

This is genocide by starvation and trauma and the U.S. just committed $30 millionto fund it.

Doctors are sounding the alarm. This is cruel and collective punishment.

Add your name and Demand accountability by SIGNING THIS PETITION: here  

Calls are very effective tools: Please call your elected official using this tool: here

4. In response to urgent calls of imminent death by forced starvation from Palestinian filmmaker and activist Bisan Owda and the Palestinian Youth Movement, parents, caregivers, and allies across the U.S. and internationally are launching a Solidarity Fast for Gaza. This coordinated fast aims to bring global attention to Israel’s deliberate use of starvation as a weapon against Palestinians in Gaza and to demand an end to U.S. complicity in the unfolding genocide. The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) projected in May that by September, 500,000 people in Gaza would face death by starvation if immediate action was not taken. Participants in the fast are demanding:

● The immediate unrestricted flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza

● An immediate arms embargo on Israel

● A full end to the ongoing genocide

Press Contact:

Eli Dewitt
+1 (919) 306-0593
parentsfast4gaza@gmail.com

To learn more, participate, or amplify the Parents’ Solidarity Fast for Gaza, visit @parentsfast4gaza on Instagram.

JOURNALS

The Lancet: Medical data collected from 6 Medecins Sans Frontieres supported health facilities in Gaza between 1/1 – 12/21, 2024, found that wound care accounted for 44.8% of all outpatient consultations; nearly 13 of these consultations were for children under 15 years of age. Of the wound care consultations, 42.6% were due to violent trauma, primarily bombs and shelling (83%). The authors emphasize that most immediate fatalities due to explosive weapons occur at the site of impact and are therefore not captured in their data. This underreporting may be particularly prevalent among vulnerable populations including infants, children, people with disabilities, and older adults. The authors reiterate MSF’s “call for an immediate and standing ceasefire, for the protection of civilians, and respect for essential medical and humanitarian work. We urge the Israeli Government to directly allow and protect impartial and unrestricted medical aid into Gaza.” here

The Lancet: Gaza is experiencing an outbreak of pediatric meningitis amid the total collapse of the health, water, and sanitation infrastructures. Physicians report severe shortages of needed supplies and treatments and are often forced to treat patients without electricity or sterile equipment. The authors emphasize that urgent international action is required including “reaching an immediate ceasefire; provision of antibiotics, vaccines, and diagnostic tools; restoration of water, sanitation, and hygiene services; establishment of humanitarian corridors; protection of health facilities; and support for disease surveillance.” here

The Lancet: Scientists from the Standing Together for Nutrition Consortium call on the nutrition, medical, public health, and scientific community to take immediate action to stop Israel’s use of widespread starvation as a weapon of war, which is “not only claiming lives today, but…inflicting irreversible intergenerational trauma and damage.” The authors explain that “wasted children are about 12 times more likely to die before their fifth birthday than children with a healthy weight” and that those who do survive will face lifelong impacts including “stunted growth, chronic diseases, and reduced educational and economic potential.” here

Feminism & Psychology: In-depth interviews with 38 Palestinian feminists explore the ways in which Palestinian feminist approaches to community building and decolonization support individual and collective survival and psychological healing in the context of ongoing settler-colonial violence and genocide. “Palestinians have once again taught the world how to practice feminism, urging us to recognize and reject the colonial brutality that condemns us to a monstrous, violent, and deadly world; to work together for a decolonized world, in a struggle that is a vital liberation struggle for all.” here

Journal of Global Ageing: This commentary discusses the overlooked experiences of older Palestinians in Gaza. The authors emphasize that decades of oppression and displacement illustrate a systemic failure to uphold global commitments to healthy aging and human rights and call on the field of gerontology to address these injustices. “Breaking the silence on Palestine can reaffirm the moral purpose and legitimacy of gerontology as a value-based discipline and contribute to advancing a much-needed transformative agenda to address injustices affecting older persons around the world.” here

Films/ webinar

Guilt Not Required: On Palestinian Prisoners, Hostages & Detainees, 8/17, 3pm ET/ noon PT. Since 1967, Israel has imprisoned  one million Palestinians—men, women, and children, many without charge, due process or trial, and subjected them to mental and physical abuse and torture. Watch the films in advance and join a Q&A discussion with: Arab Barghouthi: Palestinian Political Activist & COO, Axsos Academy; Hind Shraydeh: writer/ journalist; Sahar Francis: activist & former board member, Defense for Children International-Palestine; Steve Tamari (Moderator): Professor, ME & Islamic History, SIUE. Register here:

The Oath: to be a Palestinian doctor in Israel’s healthcare system – documentary, Dr Lina Qasem-Hassan, chair of PHR-I here

NPR INTERVIEW

Dr. Seema Jilani is a pediatrician who has been providing medical care to children in Gaza. traveled with Arwa Damon, who founded INARA, to visit Gazan refugees in Cairo. And we did hospital visits with children who are still undergoing multiple surgeries from bombardment-related injuries, including amputations. here

United Nations

·       8/6, UN agencies and NGOs called on Israel to rescind the new rule that they share personal information on Palestinian employees or face termination (by 9/9) of their humanitarian operations in Gaza and the West Bank. Already, NGOs not registered under the new system are prohibited from sending any supplies to Gaza: last month, Israel rejected aid shipments by 29 NGOs citing them as “not authorized," preventing the delivery of medicine, food, and hygiene items. This policy violates Israel’s obligations under international humanitarian law. Read the full statement here: 

·       Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur for the West Bank and Gaza, is a member of a group of experts chosen by the 47-member UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. She is tasked with probing human rights abuses in the Palestinian territories and has been vocal about what she has described as genocide by Israel against Gaza. Washington has decried what it called a “campaign of political and economic warfare” against the US and Israel, and earlier this month imposed sanctions on Albanese, following an unsuccessful U.S. pressure campaign to force the international body to remove her from her post. It’s very serious to be on the list of the people sanctioned by the US,” Albanese told The Associated Press, adding that individuals sanctioned by the US cannot have financial interactions or credit cards with any American bank. When used in “a political way,” she said the sanctions “are harmful, dangerous. …of course, it’s going to harm me. What can I do? I did everything I did in good faith, and knowing that, my commitment to justice is more important than personal interests.” (AP) 

·       Senior UN humanitarian official Jonathan Witthall said he has witnessed “first hand” what appears to be the “systematic dismantling of the means to sustain Palestinian life” in Gaza over the past 22 months. Withall wrote in an op-ed, “After months of relentless bombardment, forced displacement and deprivation, the impact of Israel’s collective punishment of Gaza’s people has never been more devastating.” Following his outspoken condemnation of Israel’s actions, Israeli authorities refused to renew Witthall’s visa. (Palestine Chronicle 8/4).

GAZA 

Despite Israeli propaganda about daily ceasefires, the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) documented the continued killing by Israeli military and US mercenaries of Palestinians seeking food aid during the past 2 months: 1,655 killed and 11,800 injured. Israeli forces continue air, land and sea bombardment, expanded ground attacks, and use of famine as a weapon. 2 new displacement orders were issued for Gaza and Khan Younis (89% of Gaza is now “off-limits”). As of 8/7, the Israeli starvation strategy has caused 197 malnutrition deaths (96 children). Over 12,000 children <5 are acutely malnourished.

·       This week: 730 Palestinians killed, 4,479 injured

·       Since 10/07/2023: 61,158+ killed, 151,442+ injured. Of these deaths, 31% were children, 16% women, 46% men, and 7% elders.

·       Israeli soldiers in Gaza: 454 killed (0 this week), 2,870 injured (6 this week)

·       Hostages in Gaza: 50

For more information, here

Israeli Attacks

·       This week’s choice between starving to death or being shot seeking aid claimed 121 lives and injured 1,184 people: 7/30, 60 killed and 700 injured by Israeli gunfire while waiting for food convoys in Zikim area; 7/31, 15 killed and 65 injured seeking food near the militarized distribution in Deir al Balah; 8/1, 12 killed and 90 injured awaiting aid trucks near Gaza City, taken to Al-Quds hospital; 8/3, 16 killed and 270 injured seeking aid in Zikim area; 8/4, 9 killed and 50 injured seeking aid in the Zikim and As Sudaniya areas; 8/5, 9 killed and 9 injured near the Wadi Gaza militarized distribution point.

·       Israeli military shelling of the Red Crescent (PRCS) in Khan Younis killed a staff member, and a volunteer was killed searching for food at the militarized Rafah distribution point. Since 10/7/2023, 508 aid workers have been killed in Gaza (346 from UN staff, 51 PCRS, 4 Red Cross, and 107 other NGOs). PRCS said “repeated strikes during evacuation and rescue operations clearly demonstrate that the shelling was deliberate and systematic.” ICRC stated: it is “unacceptable that first responders in Gaza…go to work every day fearing they may not return to their families.”

·       8/4, nurse killed by airdropped aid in Deir al Balah.

·       8/1&2, 10 killed (6 children) in 2 attacks on an IDP tent and home in/ around Deir al Balah.

·       8/3, 5 killed (3 children) and others injured in a school sheltering IDPs in Khan Younis. 

·       The latest satellite agricultural assessment  by the FAO found 86% of Gaza’s permanent crop fields harmed “due to the impact of activities such as razing, heavy vehicle activity, bombing, shelling, and other conflict-related dynamics.” They reported only 1.5% of Gaza’s cropland is currently accessible and undamaged.

·       The latest satellite Building Assessment found 78% Gaza’s structures destroyed or damaged. 

·       A new satellite Education assessment found 91.8% school buildings destroyed or damaged. 2/3s of schools that served as IDP shelters were directly hit.

·       Rapidly deteriorating survival conditions continue to disproportionately affect children, ½ of Gaza’s population. Children face neglect, forced begging, and increased harm, as well as violence, family separation, disabilities, and conflict-related injuries. Israeli military action since the end of the ceasefire (3/2025) has closed 134 safe spaces, leaving only 88. UNICEF and child protection partners are deploying social work teams to Gaza’s 4 pediatric trauma hospitals to assess and register injured children, provide counselling, and attempt to close the 95% referral gap for child protection case management for separated and unaccompanied children, children without parents, children with disabilities, child survivors of violence including gender-based violence, children with acute conflict-related injuries and disabilities including significant mental health needs, and children at high risk of harm or death.

·       Gaza is now the most bombed enclave in modern history. The proportion of destruction in the Gaza Strip is higher than: Hiroshima and Nagasaki, London, Dresden and Hamburg combined, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Libya, and Sudan. Over 92% of homes have been destroyed, razed, demolished, burned to the ground. (Muhammah Shehada quoted by ICAHD USA 8/6)

·       Israel has destroyed nearly all animal wealth in the Gaza Strip, approximately 97 percent, through bombing and systematic starvation, according to the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor. This includes working animals that served as the last means of transport amid fuel shortages and limited public mobility. (Palestine Chronicle 8/7

Hunger & malnutrition

·       As of 8/6, 193 malnutrition-related deaths were documented (96 children). As the malnutrition death toll rises, there is an urgent need to flood Gaza with food aid and nutrition supplies. The WFP stated: “[w]aiting for official confirmation of famine to provide life-saving food aid… is unconscionable." UNRWA urged action or people will continue to die from starvation and bombardment in a “completely man-made situation,” and noted: “When you are in a situation where even the caregiver starts to faint, that means the entire humanitarian structure is collapsing. This is exactly what we are observing today in Gaza.” UNICEF Deputy Executive Director, Ted Chaiban, stressed that the resumption of aid at scale and the entry of commercial cargo are critical to combat the hunger and acute malnutrition caused by over 20 months of war and 2 months of full blockade.

·       As of 8/6, of 136,000 children screened, 11,877 children suffered from acute malnutrition, the highest monthly figure recorded to date. In June and July, 18% of all acutely malnourished children were severe, compared to 12% between March and May 2025. Partners were only able to reach 3% of children <5 who require feeding and micronutrient supplements due to Israeli restrictions on entry of lipid-based nutrient supplements, reflecting a collapse of the malnutrition prevention program. The supply of other preventive and complementary food to children and Pregnant & Breastfeeding women is completely depleted, and Israeli refusal to allow nutrition supplies to enter Gaza ensures further deterioration in the nutritional situation.

·       Nutrition has worsened dramatically: 81% households report poor food consumption (compared to 33% in April) and 24% report very severe hunger in July (compared to 4% in April). 9 of 10  households resort to extremely severe coping mechanisms to feed themselves (such as taking significant safety risks to obtain food, scavenging from the garbage, etc.). Child nutrition is even worse: 94% eat from 2 or fewer food groups, compared to 58.3% in February. Acute malnutrition increased by 100% in Khan Younis and by 70% in Deir al Balah since May. In Gaza City, the Global Acute Malnutrition rate soared from 4.4% in May to 16.5% in the first half of July, reaching the Famine threshold for acute malnutrition. North Gaza governorate faces similar challenges but cannot be measured due to lack of data.

·       According to WFP’s Market Monitor, in the second half of July prices soared to unprecedented levels and almost all essential food items disappeared from markets. 

·       Alex de Waal, Executive Director of the World Peace Foundation at Tufts University, offers three steps that would settle any denial or deliberate mystification about the responsibility for starvation in Gaza: 1. International journalists should be allowed into the Gaza Strip. 2. Let aid workers in to do a proper survey of hunger. 3. Make aid monitoring transparent. (Boston Review 8/4)

·       We drink water and salt to stay standing, to keep ourselves from going dizzy and collapsing. This is what we’ve come to in Gaza, where most people will go without food for three days at a time. (Mondoweiss 8/3)

·       8/7, Democracy Now reported that at least four Palestinians had starved to death over the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of malnutrition-related deaths to at least 197. The World Food Program has warned food aid needs to be immediately flooded into Gaza to prevent mass starvation.

·       At Shuhada' Al-Aqsa Hospital, Dr. Shahin recounts collapsing markets, the disappearance of food aid, and the severe toll hunger takes on both patients and medical staff. He describes starvation not as a byproduct of war but as a deliberate policy — a slow execution designed to erase Gaza’s people — and issues an urgent call for global action before it is too late. here  

Health & hospitals 

·       WHO facilitated the medical evacuation of 47 patients and 129 companions on 7/30, and on 8/6 the medical evacuation of 15 children with 47 companions. More than 14,800 are estimated to be in need of urgent medical evacuation.

·       WHO and MoH reported a rise in Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) cases – a rare, potentially life-threatening condition where the body’s immune system attacks the peripheral nervous system. 64 cases (27 of children <15) were reported as of 7/31 compared to 5 cases yearly before 2023. WHO reports no available stock of IV Immunoglobulin, primary treatment for GBS. 8/4, MoH confirmed 3 GBS-related deaths (2 children) and warned that lack of treatment threatens to worsen the situation. According to WHO, 30% of GBS patients require ICU admission.

·       In July, 420 suspected meningitis cases were reported, the highest number since 2023. Israeli destruction of WHO’s main medical warehouse in Deir al Balah caused a critical shortage of antibiotics, essential for treatment. Isolation measures have been implemented, including the separation of the external department at Al Khair Hospital from the Nasser Medical Complex and the establishment of isolation tents at Al Aqsa Hospital to manage cases.

·       MoH stated hospitals remain overwhelmed by the surge in casualties. Bed occupancy rates at trauma hospitals have risen significantly: Al-Ahli Arab Hospital at 300%, Al-Shifa Hospital 240%, Al Rantisi Hospital 210%, and Nasser Hospital 180%. Patients are on floors and in hallways. Specialized rehab facilities, including Hamad Hospital, Al Amal Hospital, and Al Wafaa Hospital, are overwhelmed with trauma injuries and Guillain-Barré Syndrome cases. Waiting lists have reached up to 1 year. Patients with non-escalation-related disabilities are being neglected and not receiving necessary care. Hospitals are receiving an average of 8 mass casualty incidents daily.

·       Al Aqsa Hospital stated hundreds of injured people arrive at the hospital, overwhelming the emergency department, and all inpatient wards are fully occupied. Operating rooms have ceased functioning due to the lack of available beds, and patients are left in operating rooms with no space to move them to. Similarly, the Kuwaiti Specialized Field Hospital in Al Mawasi reported that they receive hundreds of critically injured people seeking food daily, adding immense pressure on overstretched medical teams amid the near-total collapse of the health system. The wound care unit has shut due to a lack of supplies. The head of the hospital urgently called on people to avoid going to the militarized distribution points to preserve life.

·       MSF analysis of 200,000 consults in 6 facilities in 2024 found that explosive weapons (bombs and grenades) caused 83% of victims: "explosive weapons are indiscriminate, causing complex injuries due to blast, fragmentation, and heat... In 2 hospitals, we observed that nearly 60% of the injuries were related to explosive weapons. The makeshift shelters in which the population is forced to live offer little to no protection against these weapons." MSF analysis flagged a very high wound infection rate of <18% among patients seeking initial care, a result of unhygienic living conditions due to multiple forced displacements. 29.6% of all wound consults were children <15, and 32% were for women.

·       In Gaza, where displaced children play a game called “air strike” and act out death, the lack of mental-health resources has become another emergency. Akhras, a child and adolescent psychiatrist, lost his home to an Israeli strike, in early 2024. He and his family have been displaced multiple times, living in tents …But he continues to work, seeing some fifty patients a day, most of them children… Akhras rely on the few tools they have left: psychosocial support, cognitive behavioral therapy (C.B.T.), and improvised coping strategies. They teach breathing exercises, emotional regulation, and techniques to

manage intrusive thoughts. When possible, they coordinate with overwhelmed medical staff to access limited psychotropic medication for patients with severe depression, psychosis, or suicidal ideation. But, as Akhras told me, most professional support has shrunk to voice notes between colleagues that ask just one question: “Are you still alive?” here

·       A Tale of Two NICUs. Of all the horrifying images coming from Gaza, the one that finally broke me was an Instagram video of Dr. Ali Alhaj Salem, a specialist in the neonatal intensive care unit, or NICU, at Al-Helou Hospital. In it Dr. Salem explains that the premature babies in his care have been born early largely because of their mothers’ malnutrition and that, for the same reason, the hospital is experiencing a shortage of breast milk. here 

·       Gaza Health Ministry reported an outbreak of Guillan-Barre Syndrome (rare condition in which the body's immune system attacks the nerves- can cause weakness, numbness or paralysis), due to increasing rates of malnutrition and severely polluted drinking water. The Ministry reported 95 new cases in one day, including 45 children; the average incidence in prior years was approximately one case per year. here

·       2/24, Dr Ge traveled to Gaza and provided medical care to burned and starving children in Rafah. Since then, he has remained an active voice in the global movement for Palestinian liberation in writing, protesting, marching, and now sailing in defiance of the siege. here 

Aid

·       7/30-8/5, of 72 aid movements coordinated with Israel: 2 (3%) were denied; 5 (7%) were withdrawn; 37 were facilitated (51%); and 28 were impeded (39%). Of the 72 movements, 33 were to collect supplies from Gaza’s crossings while the others aimed to support other ongoing humanitarian operations.

·       Since 7/20, according to the UN2720 Monitoring and Tracking Dashboard, 12,000 tons of food (wheat flour, food parcels and bulk foods for community kitchens) have entered Gaza, but most was offloaded by hungry crowds or looted along aid convoy routes. This is less than 20% of the 62,000 tons of monthly food assistance required to feed Gaza’s 2.2 million people.

·       8/5, Israeli authorities announced that private sector trade will partially resume to reduce reliance on aid. They also reported 785 humanitarian aid packages had been airdropped by 8 countries as of 8/5.

·       7/27-8/3, Israeli authorities exempted UN agencies from the newly imposed customs clearance for cargo coming from Egypt. 

·       While limited quantities of fuel entered Gaza this week, fuel remains limited and unpredictable, especially undermining water production and distribution. This severe shortfall has had a direct and widespread impact on water availability, especially acute in northern Gaza. 7/7-12, a worsening of drinking water availability was reported by 90% of people.

·       Since 8/1, several thousand hygiene kits entered Gaza for the first time since 3/2, but they were looted or offloaded before planned distribution, reflecting popular desperation. More than 100,000 hygiene kits, enough to support 1/3 of the population, remain stuck outside Gaza. 40% of households lack soap at home, and hygiene-related expenses are rising. 

·       More than 1 million shelter items (tents, tarps, sealing materials) and 2.3 million non-food items remain stranded in Jordan and Egypt. Israeli authorities have refused entry of shelter materials since 3/2. Most families live in overcrowded, unsafe, and undignified conditions, and some have no shelter: 11% of surveyed households live out in the open. This dire situation is compounded by ongoing bombardment, displacement orders, and growing insecurity. An estimated 1.35 million people require emergency shelter items and 1.4 million lack essential household items.

·       Israeli authorities continue to refuse entry for about 100 truckloads of educational supplies stranded in Egypt and Jordan since March. Israel also refuses entry to equipment, spare parts, fuel, and oil for telecommunications, significantly impeding the ability to provide services and support humanitarian coordination.

·       UNICEF Leader Returns From Gaza With Harrowing Warning of Mass Child Starvation. “The children I met are not victims of a natural disaster,” said the UNICEF deputy director, “They are being starved.” here

·       Doctors Without Borders, or MSF, called for the closure of Israeli- and U.S.-backed aid centers in Gaza, saying they have become sites of “orchestrated killing and dehumanization.” Some 1,400 Palestinians have been killed since May trying to access aid since the so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation took over aid delivery. In a statement, MSF said, “In MSF’s nearly 54 years of operations, rarely have we seen such levels of systematic violence against unarmed civilians.” 8/6, Israel shelled the headquarters of the Palestinian Red Crescent in Khan Younis. It was the second attack on the facility in recent days. (Democracy Now 8/7)

·       Haaretz: US firm, Arkel International, is responsible for transporting aid to Gaza Humanitarian Foundation distribution sites. This makes Arkel International GHF’s third known subcontractor in addition to UG Solutions and Safe Reach Solutions. A contractor for the US government and militaries across the world, Arkel International brought drivers from Eastern Europe, primarily Georgia and Serbia, to Israel to transport food packages into Gaza. The drivers report that they were offered higher wages than they could make at home. According to the company’s incorporation papers in Israel, its authorized in-country representative is Hezi Bezalel, an Israeli businessman who amassed profits from dealing arms and brokering defense deals on behalf of Israel in multiple African countries. here

WEST BANK, INCLUDING EAST JERUSALEM

·       In the past week, 2 Palestinians were killed and 57 (11 children) injured. 

·       170 West Bank Palestinians have been killed so far in 2025. 

·       As of August 2025, according to Israel Prison Service data, there are 10,741 Palestinians in Israeli custody, including: 1,459 sentenced, 3,291 remand detainees, 3,613 administrative detainees (held without charge or trial), and 2,378 “unlawful combatants.”

For more West Bank information: here

Israeli attacks

·       8/4, Israeli forces shot a shoulder-fired missile at Palestinians in Qabatiya (Jenin), killing 1 and injuring 1. They bulldozed an agricultural structure and detained the injured man, while releasing the corpse to Palestinian medics. 

·       8/3, a man from Jenin under administrative detention since 5/6 died in unclear circumstances. Since 10/7/2023, 76 Palestinians (46 from Gaza, 28 from the West Bank, and 2 Israeli citizens) have died in Israeli custody. 

Demolitions, displacement & movement restrictions

This week, Israeli authorities demolished 43 Palestinian-owned structures for lack of Israeli-issued building permits, displacing 47 people (21 children) and affecting hundreds. 

·       8/4, 4 Bedouin families (25 people, 15 children) were displaced following the demolition of their structures in Area C of Jericho. Five residential structures, a common kitchen, two animal shelters and a mobile latrine were demolished, and the families’ personal belongings and three water tanks were destroyed. 8/4, in Area C of Al Judeira village (Jerusalem), a family of 3 (1 child) was displaced, and 2 other families (11 people, 4 children) were affected by the demolition of 12 structures, including a 2-story residential building. 

·       7/31, Israeli authorities sealed 2 wells serving Beit Dajan and Beit Furik (Area B, Nablus) without prior notice. One well, 400m. deep, had supplied drinking and irrigation water from 2022-2025. The other, 370m. deep, was intended to supplement irrigation and the local water network. The wells’ closure reduced water availability by 20% for 23,000 residents in both towns. 1/2023-8/2025, Israel has sealed 12 West Bank wells.

·       Israeli authorities issued final demolition notices last week for 2 multi-story Palestinian residential buildings in Silwan (East Jerusalem), threatening 29 Palestinian families with displacement. The buildings demolition orders are due to the lack of Israeli-issued building permits, nearly impossible for Palestinians to obtain. A Supreme Court appeal has temporarily delayed enforcement. According to the Israeli NGO Ir Amim, in As Suwwana, 17 Palestinian families (140 people) are affected as the National Enforcement Unit (NEU) of the Israeli Ministry of National Security has signaled its intent to demolish the 5-story building. 

·       Israeli forces continue to operate in Jenin city and Jenin Camp. 7/30, they briefly detained 18 Palestinians returning to retrieve their belongings from their homes in Jenin Camp, as coordinated through the Palestinian District Coordination and Liaison Office (DCL). 8/1, a family of 3 (1 child) were attempting to reach their home in Jenin Camp to collect personal belongings when their car was hit by an Israeli military vehicle driving against traffic. All were injured and prevented from reaching their home. 

·       8/3, 2 girls (12- and 16-years old) were shot by Israeli forces during an operation in Jenin. The context of the incident is unclear.

·       The Protection Cluster reported that the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, is facing a sharp rise in child protection risks, driven by settler violence, Israeli military operations, detention, and forced displacement. The forced displacement of 32,000+ people has significantly escalated risks for children, particularly in Jenin and Tulkarm. Families are forced to resort to child labor, early marriage, and withdrawal from school. Children are increasingly affected by psychological distress, including anxiety, PTSD, and depression. Protection partners have responded by providing group or individual mental health and psycho-social support (MHPSS) services to more than 45,600 children, and 9,650 caregivers receive positive parenting sessions.

·       An Education Cluster report documents 2,000+ education-related incidents, half in Area C, affecting 540 schools and 84,000. Israeli operations forced many schools to close for short periods or shift to online learning, disrupting education for thousands. Nablus was most affected governorate, with 849 incidents. As of June, 84 schools face demolition orders, 10 in East Jerusalem and 74 in Area C. These schools serve 12,855 students supported by 1,076 teachers.

Intensification of Settler Attacks and Settlement Activities

Last week, 41 settler attacks caused casualties, property damage, or both, in 27 communities, displacing 6 households (27 people, 13 children), killing 2 and injuring 29 Palestinians (6 children). 600 fruit, 11 vehicles, 20 homes, and 19 animal shelters were vandalized. 

·       8/2, 18 armed settlers from a new outpost near Aqraba (Nablus) prevented Palestinian farmers from working their lands and, after a stone was thrown at them, opened fire and shot and killed a 24-year-old man and injured 8 others. Israeli forces arrived and dispersed the Palestinians with tear gas.

·       7/31 and 8/1, setters and Israeli military attacked Deir Jarir village (Ramallah) injuring 15 Palestinians: 4 by settlers, 11 by soldiers. On both days, settlers raided the village, Israeli forces intervened with live ammunition (injuring 2) and tear gas (injuring 8, 4 children). Settler stone throwing damaged 6 Palestinian vehicles, injured 3 people, and damaged a house and kiosk.

·       7/30, 6 Palestinian families (27 people, 13 children) were displaced from Muda’an community (Bethlehem) after being repeatedly intimidated, harassed, and attacked by settlers from a newly established Deir Alla outpost. They left with their livestock, leaving behind 6 homes and 4 latrines, all subsequently destroyed by settlers. 17 Palestinian families (101 people, 53 children) were previously displaced by the same settlers 7/23-28. All displaced families have relocated to Kisan village, where they lack shelter and access to basic services.

·       Of the 41 settler attacks last week, 8 involved arson -- fire, Molotov cocktails, and the torching or vandalism of 20 vehicles. In Silwad (Ramallah), settlers set fire to 8 vehicles parked near homes, killing one man by smoke inhalation as he attempted to extinguish the flames.

·       6 of the 41 incidents targeted agricultural lands in 4 villages across Hebron, Ramallah, Salfit, and Nablus governorates, destroying nearly 600 trees, damaging 31 dunums (about 7.7 acres) of crops, and injuring a man due to tear gas inhalation. The majority of the damage occurred in Burqa (Nablus), where settlers from the re-established Homesh settlement attacked, including setting fire to a home garden. As family members attempted to put it out, Israeli forces intervened with tear gas, injuring a Palestinian man. Homesh, one of 4 settlements evacuated in 2005, was re-established in 2020 as a religious school and the Israeli military lifted the ban on Israeli entry in May 2023, allocating land to a settlement council. Settlers soon began erecting structures on privately-owned Palestinian land and denying access to Palestinians.

·       7/29, the Israeli High Court of Justice ruled Israeli authorities should consider closing the Al Mu’arrajat East area to Israeli civilians. The decision responded to a Norwegian Refugee Council petition requesting protection following a massive  7/2  settler attack that displaced a Bedouin community. 7/30, despite Court affirmation of the Israeli forces duty to maintain public order and protect residents, settlers from Mevo’ot Jericho and other outposts broke into the now-empty community, demolished dozens of structures and ransacked others. 7/3, displaced residents and activists repaired some damaged structures. Settlers, accompanied by Israeli forces, gathered along an adjacent road, intimidating residents. At dawn, they broke into the community again and set fire to the repaired structures, making the return and re-establishment of the community more difficult.

·       West Bank community activist Awdah Hathaleen was killed by Israeli settler Yinon Levy in broad daylight. The perpetrator walks free, while Awdah’s body has been held hostage by the Israeli army. The village of Umm al-Khair is going on hunger strike to recover his body. (Mondoweiss 8/5)

ISRAEL

·       'Destroying Homes in Gaza Is a Mitzvah' | Naomi Zini, Wife of Netanyahu's Pick for Shin Bet Chief Says War in Gaza Is Holy Commandment. Zini lauds the violence by Israeli soldiers in Gaza in her new book, and sees the war in Gaza as a 'redemption' for the Jewish people. here

·       'Desperate' Netanyahu pushes Gaza takeover plan as military balks. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is poised to escalate the military operation in the Gaza Strip and may even order the Israeli army to seize control of all of Gaza. here

·       Israel’s security cabinet has approved a plan by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the military occupation of Gaza City. “The [Israeli military] will prepare to take control of Gaza City while providing humanitarian aid to the civilian population outside the combat zones,” Netanyahu’s office said. (Democracy Now 8/7, NYT 8/7), here, here

·       Nasser Laham, editor-in-chief of the Ma'an News Agency was detained for nine days in Ofer Prison because of his journalism. Laham reports that during his imprisonment, Israeli guards beat him, cursed him, and filmed naked. He also described the prison’s inhumane conditions including scabies infections, extremely limited medical care, and insufficient food. “In Ofer Prison, it doesn't matter if you're guilty. What matters is that you're Palestinian.” here

·       Israel has asked to delay its response to a petition demanding the allowance of Red Cross visits to Palestinian prisoners. This is the 20th postponement Israel has requested from the High Court of Justice. Israel halted Red Cross visits immediately after October 7th and has also stopped sending information about detainees to the organization. Reports of human rights violations including violence, inadequate medical care, and limited access to food and water are widespread. here

·       Exporting the Crisis: Israel’s Quiet Campaign to Relocate Gazans to Third Countries. In a development that has deeply alarmed diplomats, legal scholars, and human rights observers, Israeli intelligence—led by Mossad Director David Barnea—has launched a covert diplomatic campaign aimed at persuading third countries to absorb large numbers of Palestinians displaced by the war on Gaza. here

·       ‘A million calls an hour’: Israel relying on Microsoft cloud for expansive surveillance of Palestinians. The Israeli military undertook an ambitious project to store a giant trove of Palestinians’ phone calls on Microsoft’s servers in Europe, facilitating deadly airstrikes on Gaza and shaping military operations across the occupied territories. here, (Just Vision 8/6)

·       7/28/25, the reputable Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem published an eighty-eight-page report entitled Our Genocide, in which it accuses the State of Israel of perpetrating genocide in Gaza. While the report’s potential significance—particularly in shaping both international and domestic public opinion—remains undeniable, the widespread acclaim it has received warrants critical scrutiny. This is due not only to the protracted delay of over twenty months before B’Tselem adopted the term “genocide,” well after numerous international organizations (such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch) and Palestinian human rights groups (including the Palestinian Center for Human Rights and Al-Haq) had already done so, but more fundamentally to the rhetorical and analytical strategies deployed throughout the report. (Mondoweiss 8/6)

·       Over 600 ex-Israeli senior security officials urge Trump to end Gaza war. The group’s letter says the Israeli army has already achieved its objectives and the release of Israeli captives can be achieved only through a deal. here

UNITED STATES

·       Trump’s Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee toured an “aid distribution” site run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in Rafah in southern Gaza. During the envoy's highly stage-managed visit, at least 82 Palestinians were killed in Israeli attacks across the enclave, including 49 people seeking food aid with more than 270 injured. here

·       More than 40 people protesting the war and worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza were arrested outside the Trump International hotel in New York City on Monday evening. The protest, organized by IfNotNow, a Jewish-American anti-occupation group, had begun earlier in the evening at Columbus Circle. Hundreds  gathered under the banner “Trump: Jews Say No More” to demand an end to the war in Gaza and that the Trump administration pressure Israel to allow greater humanitarian aid to enter into territory, as health officials there continue to report deaths from starvation and malnutrition. (Guardian 8/5)

·       I spent decades at Columbia. I’m withdrawing my fall course due to its deal with Trump. Rashid Khalidi.

Dear Acting President Shipman,
I am writing you an open letter since you have seen fit to communicate the recent decisions of the board of trustees and the administration in a similar fashion.

These decisions, taken in close collaboration with the Trump administration, have made it impossible for me to teach modern Middle East history, the field of my scholarship and teaching for more than 50 years, 23 of them at Columbia. Although I have retired, I was scheduled to teach a large lecture course on this topic in the fall as a “special lecturer”, but I cannot do so under the conditions Columbia has accepted by capitulating to the Trump administration in June. here.

·       How the Department of Health and Human Services Took the Lead in Trump’s Campus Crackdown. The agency has threatened crucial medical research funding to extract concessions from universities on student protests and DEI. here

·       By 9/30, the White House plans to reclassify 50,000 federal workers and assign allies to key roles. This widespread expansion of Trump’s de facto political army will have brutal effects on the crackdown against Palestine in higher education. (Mondoweiss 8/8)

·       How Trump’s War on Higher Education Is Hitting Community Colleges. Measures intended to punish elite universities are inflicting collateral damage on the nation’s two-year colleges, which educate 40% of all undergraduates. here

·       Professors and other scholars at public universities in Arkansas are now banned from using the term “West Bank” inn their syllabi and other official documents and are now required to use the term “Judea and Samaria.” here

INTERNATIONAL

·       Public disillusionment about Israel is no longer just about Gaza or the current Israeli government; it extends to the entire framework of German-Israeli relations. According to the Allensbach Institute’s poll, a majority — 52% — now reject the notion that Germany owes Israel a “special responsibility” rooted in the legacy of the Holocaust. And 37% now regard Israel as a threat to world peace, up from just 11% in 2021. here

·       The International Sociological Association has suspended the Israeli Sociological Association after its refusal to condemn genocide, marking a significant milestone in the international academic boycott of Israel. Global Sociologists for Israel (GS4P) applauds the successful BDS mobilization for Gaza spearheaded by its members at the International Sociological Association (ISA) held in Rabat, Morocco, in July 2025. here

·       The Royal Ballet and Opera, one of Britain’s most prestigious arts institutions, has canceled its planned production of ‘Tosca’ in Israel after a widespread staff backlash. In a recent open letter, 182 members of staff said they reject holding ‘current or future performances” in Israel because of its war in Gaza. (NYT 8/6)

·       Activists from 44 countries gathered in Tunis to prepare for a coordinated maritime effort known as the global Global Soumud Flotilla, aimed at breaking the Israeli blockade on Gaza. Four campaigns – the Maghreb Steadfastness Flotilla, the Global Movement towards Gaza, the East Asian Initiative, and the Freedeom Flotilla have united for this initiative. (Palestine Chronicle 8/4) 

·       Over six hundred journalists have renewed a call to let in  foreign press as Israel begins ‘full conquest.’ "When governments can unilaterally shut down access to war zones," the petitioners warn, "they undermine the very foundation of democracy: press freedom as a check on power." (Common Dreams 8/5)

·       Israel’s plan to take over Gaza City has sparked global condemnation with warnings of more destruction and suffering. Widespread demands are calling for the takeover plan to be stopped, and Germany has halted arms exports. (The Guardian 8/8)

SOURCES

OCHAOPT, The Guardian, New York Times, Common Dreams, Palestine Chronicle, Mondoweiss, Palestine Studies, +972, Arkansas Legislation, Jewish Currents, Drop Site, News, Aljazeera, Just Vision, EJ Magnier, Haaretz, Al Monitor, Democracy Now, Palestine Studies, New Yorker, ICAHD, Boston Review, AP, NPR, Youtube, Sagepub, The Lancet