“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:
- 318 Gazans killed, 393 violations, since the ceasefire, even amidst heavy rains. A Trump-led UN resolution for reconstruction involves no Palestinian voice.
- Settler terrorism in the West Bank remains high, with arson and killings. An Israeli minister called for assassination of Palestinian authorities if statehood progress.
- Israel has killed several people in southern Lebanon, as Singapore sanctions 4 Israeli settler terrorists.
- America cancelled its meeting with Lebanon after its statement on Israel’s aggression, and an American citizen is given poor treatment in Israeli prison.
Takeaways:
- Israel is repeatedly violating the ceasefire, killing scores, with impunity.
- Terrorism against West Bank Palestinians remains high, near corporate sites.
- The UN resolution for reconstruction has little say from Gazans.
- American politics is heavily influenced by a state hundreds of miles away.
As your constituents we urge you to:
- Call for a complete end to the killing in Gaza, and a stronger flow of aid.
- Push for more Gazan representation in the reconstruction plan.
- Oppose Trump’s plan for deep intervention in Gaza’s politics.
- Divest from Israeli companies operating on violently occupied land, and use those funds at home.
393 Violations, 318 Dead
- Scores killed, violations rack up, and a resolution promises colonialism
- 11/22 – Since the ceasefire, Israel has killed 318 Palestinians, violating the truce 393 times. [IAK]
- 11/18 – UNRWA report: [UNRWA]
- Almost 70,000 Gazans killed since Oct. 7th 2023
- 994 West Bank Palestinians killed since Oct. 7th, 2023
- Some examples of violations of the ceasefire
- 11/16 – Israel killed ~3 Gazans as heavy rains flooded makeshift tents. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/19 – ~28 Gazans killed in wave of Israeli attacks on Gaza. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/20 – ~30 Gazans killed by Israeli airstrikes, the deadliest breach of the ceasefire. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/22 – ~24 Gazans killed by Israel, another violation of the ceasefire. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/16 – A Palestinian man who left Gaza on the plane to South Africa described the operation, backed by Israel, as similar to human trafficking. They had to pay ~$2k per seat. [Al Jazeera] [Reuters]
- 11/17 – >98 Gazans dead in Israeli detention since Oct. 7th 2023, with torture and medical neglect. [Reuters]
- 11/17 – The UNSC resolution for Gaza fails to meet Palestinians’ rights and demands, seeking to impose an international trusteeship. [Reuters]
- 11/17 – >288,000 families in Gaza endure shelter crises with Israeli restrictions on humanitarian supplies. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/18 – Israel shot Al Jazeera Arabic cameraman Fadi Yassin while he was covering a protest by displaced West Bank families. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/19 – Heavy rain in Gaza has caused floods, with cesspits overflowing and with most Gazans having no homes. [Reuters]
- 11/20 – Palestinian families are besieged in northern Gaza as Israel repositioned its forces deeper, a violation of the ceasefire. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/21 – UNICEF: ~67 Palestinian children have been killed in Gaza since the ceasefire. [Al Jazeera]
- Israel calls for assassination and supports terrorism
- 11/20 – OCHA update on the West Bank: [OCHA]
- Israel killed 4 Palestinians, 3 children, between 11 and 17 Nov.
- 13 more Palestine-owned structures demolished
- 29 more settler attacks against Palestinians
- 11/17 – Israel’s National Security Minister says Palestinian Authority officials should be assassinated if progress is made towards Palestinian Statehood. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/17 – Israeli settlers launch 2 major arson attacks on West Bank villages. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/18 – Netanyahu said he will convene cabinet ministers to punish Israeli terrorists, weeks after they began their assaults. [Reuters]
- 11/20 – Human Rights Watch: Israel’s expulsion of tens of thousands of Palestinians from West Bank refugee camps in early 2025 constitutes war crimes. [Reuters]
- 11/21 – Israel killed 2 West Bank teenagers during an overnight raid near Ramallah. [Reuters]
- 11/21 – Israel plans to seize parts of a key West Bank historical site, with settlers setting up an outpost there. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/20 – OCHA update on the West Bank: [OCHA]
Amid heavy rain, Gazans suffer without tent supplies and other necessary aid. [Al Jazeera]
Sanctions and Airstrikes
- Sanctions from Singapore, aggression against Lebanon, and an unjust resolution
- 11/16 – Israel opened fire on UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon. [Reuters]
- 11/17 – UNSC approves a resolution mandating a transitional administration and an International Stabilization Force in Gaza. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/18 – The UNSC Gaza plan would involve foreign officials, including Trump, taking charge over Gaza’s reconstruction, instead of Gaza’s own people. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/19 – Israel struck southern Lebanon, killing 13 and wounding several. [Reuters]
- 11/20 – Israel killed at least 1 person in south Lebanon. [Reuters]
- 11/21 – Singapore to impose financial sanctions on 4 Israelis and bar them from entry, due to “extreme violence” against Palestinians in the West Bank. [Reuters]
- 11/21 – The International Red Cross will reduce its budget by a fifth, partly due to the US aid budget cuts. [Reuters]
Israel has struck south Lebanon several times in the past week, killing several civilians. [Reuters]
US of Israel
- Israel’s control over American politics
- 11/18 – America cancelled meetings with Lebanese armed forces commander after objecting to a statement issued by Israel regarding border tensions. [Reuters]
- 11/19 – Family of Mohammed Ibrahim, a detained Palestinian-American boy in Israel, is calling on reports about his alarming situation in prison. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/21 – RTX to work with Raytheon to secure a $1.25B contract to supply Israel with surface-to-air missiles. [Reuters]
- 11/21 – CAIR filed a federal lawsuit against Texas Governor’s declaration of it as a “foreign terrorist organization”. [Al Jazeera]
Texas governor unjustly deemed the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) a foreign terrorist group. [Al Jazeera]