“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:
- 241 Gazans killed by 194 Israeli violations of the “ceasefire”. Indirect causes of death are beginning, including pollution by Israel. Hostage exchange continues.
- October was the largest amount of settler violence in the West Bank since the UN began recording that data, >264 attacks.
- Israel arrests former military prosecutor for leaking video showing abuse of a Palestinian prisoner. The military carries out heavy airstrikes in Lebanon.
- Trump threatens to defund NYC if its people choose Mamdani. The US pushes to “temporarily” govern Gaza. It’s absent from UN session on human rights record.
Takeaways:
- The ceasefire has resulted in scores killed by Israel.
- Settler violence in illegal West Bank settlements is growing extremely fast.
- The Israeli government is against human rights and justice.
- Trump’s administration is actively suppressing American ideals of democracy, self-determination, and equal rights for all.
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 Israeli companies operating on violently occupied land, and use those funds at home.
194 Violations, 241 Dead
- Israel’s kill count continues rising after the ceasefire, as its indirect killers start
- 11/8 – Since the ceasefire, Israel has killed 241 Palestinians, violating the truce 194 times. [IAK]
- 11/4 – UNRWA report: [UNRWA]
- 68,643 Gazans killed since Oct. 7th 2023
- 1,009 West Bank Palestinians killed since Oct. 7th, 2023
- 11/3 – Israel kills 3 Gazans. [Reuters]
- 11/4 – Far too little aid is reaching Gaza, humanitarian agencies say. [Reuters]
- 11/4 – Constant Israeli artillery shelling in south Gaza; farms and homes being destroyed in east Gaza. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/8 – Israel’s genocide in Gaza has poisoned and polluted the ground and water in Gaza. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/8 – Israel kills 3 Gazans. [Al Jazeera]
- Captive exchange
- The most settler violence since decades in the West Bank
- 11/6 – OCHA update on the West Bank: [OCHA]
- October 2025 has the highest monthly Israeli settler attacks since 2006, when OCHA began documenting them first.
- 6 Palestinians killed between Oct. 28th and Nov. 3rd.
- 11 Palestinian-owned structures demolished by Israel between Oct. 28th and Nov. 3rd.
- 264 Israeli settler attacks in Oct. 2025, resulting in casualties, property damage, or both.
- 11/2 – Israeli settlers caught terrorizing a Palestinian family’s livestock. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/3 – Israel arrested a former military prosecutor for leaking a video showing soldiers abusing a Palestinian detainee. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/3 – Israel is holding a record 360 Palestinian children from the West Bank in prisons in a system of control and abuse. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/7 – Israeli settlers carry out >264 attacks, the biggest monthly total since the UN began tracking data on the matter. [Reuters]
- 11/6 – OCHA update on the West Bank: [OCHA]
Israeli settlers attack a Palestinian family’s barn, as part of a dramatically increased amount of settler violence. [Al Jazeera]
Aid and Aggression
- A summit calls for peace, as Israel bombs its neighbor
- 11/2 – Turkey to call for security and administration of Gaza by Palestinians. [Reuters]
- 11/3 – An international summit in Turkey called for Israel to stop ceasefire violations. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/6 – Israel carried out heavy airstrikes in southern Lebanon. [Reuters]
- 11/7 – The UAE is preparing to increase aid deliveries into Gaza. [Reuters]
Israel launched several strikes on southern Lebanon. [Reuters]
Suppression and Circumvention
- Crackdowns at home, meddling abroad
- 11/3 – Trump threatened to hold back federal funds to NYC if Mamdani wins the election. [Reuters]
- 11/3 – Military whistleblower accuses previous US government of downplaying evidence that Israel intentionally killed journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, a US citizen, in 2022. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/4 – Trump accused any Jewish voted for Mamdani a “stupid person”. [Reuters]
- 11/4 – US has drafted a UN resolution for a 2-year mandate for a Gaza transitional governance body. [Reuters]
- 11/6 – Sami Hamdi’s London university called for “full transparency and due process” regarding his detention. [Al Jazeera]
- 11/7 – The US didn’t attend a UN meeting to review the US’s human rights record. [Reuters]
- 11/7 – The US gathered intelligence that Israel’s military lawyers warned there was evidence that supports war crimes charges against Israel, which were reliant on US-supplied weapons [Reuters]
The US was absent from a UN meeting to review the US’s human rights record. [Reuters]