“Bismillaahir-rahmaanir raheem”
(In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful)
Watermelon Wednesday is a weekly brief shared with our elected officials to ensure they are aware of Israel’s aggression, the Palestinian experience, and our country’s complicity in this genocide and international war crimes.
TL;DR:
- 125 ceasefire violations from Israel so far, with 226 Gazans killed. Gaza is not receiving its agreed upon aid, requiring more aid trucks and reconstruction tools.
- 60 Israeli settler attacks on the West Bank this week during olive harvest season, the highest level of damage since 2020.
- Israel attacked peacekeepers in Lebanon.
- The U.S. detained commentator Sami Hamdi as Trump insists on a “working” ceasefire despite ongoing killings, while Israel’s efforts to shape U.S. Christian opinion come to light.
Takeaways:
- The ceasefire is a rubber stamp; Gazans are continuously being killed.
- Israeli settlers & soldiers remain penalty-free in their terrorism in the West Bank.
- Trump’s administration continues to stifle free speech and honest journalism.
As your constituents we urge you to:
- Call for a complete end to the killing in Gaza, and a stronger flow of aid.
- Demand immediate penalties for those responsible for war crimes.
- Call for the release of Sami Hamdi and others unjustly detained.
- Divest from Israel-supporting businesses/organizations, and use those funds at home.
125 Violations, 226 Dead
- Israel repeatedly violates the ceasefire and imposes terrorism in the West Bank.
- 11/1 – Since the ceasefire, Israel has killed 226 Palestinians, violating the truce 125 times. [IAK]
- 10/26 – UNRWA report: [UNRWA]
- 68,234 Gazans killed since Oct. 7th 2023
- 1,004 West Bank Palestinians killed since Oct. 7th, 2023
- 10/26 – Israeli forces carry out a “targeted strike” on an individual in central Gaza who was planning to attack Israeli troops, said Israel. [Reuters]
- 10/26 – Gaza City requires >250 heavy vehicles and 1,000 tonnes of cement to maintain water networks and construct wells. [Al Jazeera]
- 10/28 – Netanyahu ordered the military to immediately carry out “powerful” attacks in Gaza. [Reuters]
- 10/28 – Israeli planes launched strikes on Gaza after it accused Hamas of violating the ceasefire. [Reuters]
- 10/28 – Israel kills 20 Gazans, 1 Israeli soldier wounded. [Al Jazeera]
- 10/29 – Israel said it conducted a “targeted” strike in Beit Lahia in northern Gaza. [Reuters]
- 10/29 – Israel said it “resumed the ceasefire” then killed >100 Gazans. [Al Jazeera]
- 10/31 – Israel struck Gaza, killing 3 people. [Reuters]
- 11/1 – Just 24% of trucks are allowed into Gaza that were agreed upon as part of the ceasefire deal. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/1 – Israel killed 5 Gazans. [IAK]
- Captive exchange rates
- 10/27 – Location of 12 deceased Israeli captives is proving difficult to find due to the vast amount of rubble from Israeli bombardment. [Al Jazeera]
- 10/28 – In response to Israel’s violations of the ceasefire in Gaza, Hamas said it would postpone a handover of a recovered hostage. [Reuters]
- 10/28 – Israel is still holding 95 Palestinian healthcare workers in prison. [Al Jazeera]
- 10/31 – Israel returns bodies of 30 Gazans, some showing signs of torture. [Al Jazeera]
- Settler impunity in the West Bank, trouble elsewhere in the region
- 10/30 – OCHA update on the West Bank: [OCHA]
- 60 Israeli settler attacks across the West Bank this week
- 126 attacks in 70 towns with over 4,000 olive trees vandalized
- 2 Palestinian men killed in Nablus and Hebron between 21 and 27 Oct.
- 10/28 – Israeli forces kill and withhold bodies of 3 Palestinian men in Jenin.
- 52 Palestinians injured between 21 and 27 Oct.
- 10/26 – Israeli settlers and soldiers block, harass, and assault Palestinian farmers during the olive season. [Al Jazeera]
- 10/28 – Israel killed 3 Palestinian militants in the West Bank. [Reuters]
- 10/30 – ~200,000 Orthodox Jews protested in West Jerusalem against military conscription. [Al Jazeera]
- 10/31 – Israel’ s military’s chief legal officer resigned over a criminal inquiry into the leaking of a video showing abuse of a Palestinian prisoner. [Reuters]
- 10/31 – Olive harvest season in the West Bank witnessed the highest level of damage and number of Israeli attacks since 2020. [Al Jazeera]
- 10/30 – OCHA update on the West Bank: [OCHA]
A rescue worker searches for people trapped under rubble after an Israeli strike on Gaza City. [Reuters]
Neighborhood Aggression
- The UN continues the conversation
- 10/26 – Israeli strikes Lebanon, killing 3 and striking UNIFIL patrol. [Al Jazeera]
- 10/26 – UN condemned Israeli attack that hit UN peacekeeping troops in southern Lebanon. [Al Jazeera]
- 10/28 – The UN special rapporteur on Palestine published a new report that detailed states complicit in Israel’s genocide in Gaza. [Al Jazeera]
Israel struck souther Lebnon, killing 3 and firing at UNIFIL peacekeeping patrol. [Al Jazeera]
Oppression and Puppeteers
- The myth of free speech
- 10/26 – Zille Eizad resigns from role as principal software engineer at Microsoft, saying that Microsoft must “end all contracts” with the Israeli military. [Al Jazeera]
- 10/26 – British political commentator Sami Hamdi is detained by federal authorities in the US in an “abduction”. [Al Jazeera]
- 10/27 – US Secretary of State said Washington does not view a strike from Israel on a Gaza militant group as a violation of the ceasefire. [Reuters]
- 10/27 – A former US colonel accused Biden’s administration of softening its findings of the killing of journalist and US citizen Ahireen Abu Akleh. [Al Jazeera]
- 10/29 – Trump insists that the ceasefire is working, despite Israeli forces killing >100 Gazans in one day. [Al Jazeera]
- 10/30 – Israel contracted ~3 public relations companies to bolster its image online among US Christian circles. [Al Jazeera]
Sami Hamdi, a political commentator and journalist, was detained by ICE at an airport. [Al Jazeera]