“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:
- Israel has killed 414 Gazans and violated the ceasefire 875 times, as it says that the military will never leave all of Gaza.
- Palestine is in need of financial aid, as Israel continues terrorizing the West Bank, expelling hundreds, and as it kills 2 Palestinians.
- The ICJ case against Israel is joined by Belgium, as several countries condemn new settlements in the West Bank. Israel continues bombing Lebanon.
Takeaways:
- The genocide hasn’t ended, and Gazans are in need of aid.
- Palestine needs financial support, and America needs to hold Israel accountable for its terrorism in the West Bank.
- America needs to join the countries condemning Israel’s West Bank violations.
As your constituents we urge you to:
- Call for a complete end to the ceasefire violations, and a stronger flow of aid.
- Condemn Israel’s incitement of violence in the West Bank.
- Divest from Israeli companies operating on violently occupied land, and use those funds at home.
875 Violations, 414 Killed
- Continued violations with Gaza in desperate need of medical supplies
- 12/27 – Since the ceasefire, Israel has killed 414 Palestinians, violating the truce 875 times. [IAK]
- 12/22 – Israeli forces kill at least 2 Gazans. [Al Jazeera]
- 12/24 – At least 1 Gazan has been killed, 6 injured. [Al Jazeera]
- 12/26 – UNRWA report: [UNRWA]
- 70,668 Gazans killed since Oct. 7th 2023
- 1,043 West Bank Palestinians killed since Oct. 7th, 2023
- 12/21 – Gaza’s Health Ministry appeals for increased drug, medical consumables, and laboratory supplies. [Al Jazeera]
- 12/23 – Israel’s Defence Minister says the military would never leave all of Gaza. [Reuters]
- 12/27 – Dr. Hussam Abu Safia is still in Israeli prison after a year, without charges or trial. [Al Jazeera]
- 12/27 – Since the ceasefire, Israel has killed 414 Palestinians, violating the truce 875 times. [IAK]
- Several killed/expelled in the West Bank, as Palestine is in need of financial aid
- 12/23 – OCHA update on the West Bank: [OCHA]
- “Four Palestinian children were killed in the West Bank over the past two weeks…
- “Over 100 Palestinians were displaced by demolitions and evictions over the past two weeks…
- “Settler violence and access restrictions have driven displacement across 85 Palestinian communities and areas in the West Bank, with 33 fully emptied of their residents, in the past three years.”
- 12/21 – Israel shoots dead 2 Palestinians, including a teenage boy, at “point-blank” range. [Al Jazeera]
- 12/22 – Israel’s military reviews an incident where soldiers shot dead a teenager Palestinian, ignoring the multiple others they killed. [Reuters]
- 12/23 – Israel begins demolishing shops near the Qalandiya refugee camp north of East Jerusalem. [Al Jazeera]
- 12/26 – An Israeli reservist rams his vehicle into a Palestinian man as he prays on a roadside in the West Bank. [Reuters]
- 12/26 – The Palestinian economy is in need of aid, with a downturn driven by Israel’s assault on Gaza. [Al Jazeera]
- 12/23 – OCHA update on the West Bank: [OCHA]
Israel killed 2 Palestinians, including a teenager, during a raid on the West Bank. [Al Jazeera]
International Justice Persists
- Israel continues terrorism in Lebanon, as countries continue striking back
- 12/22 – 3 people killed in an Israeli air strike targeting a car in southern Lebanon. [Reuters]
- 12/23 – Belgium formally joins the case at the International Court of Justice against Israel. [Al Jazeera]
- 12/24 – Countries (such as the UK, Canada, Germany) condemned Israel’s approval of 19 new settlements in the West Bank. [Reuters]
- 12/25 – Pope Leo decried conditions for Gazans in his Christmas sermon. [Reuters]
Belgium has joined the case at the ICJ against Israel’s genocide. [Al Jazeera]