A funeral has been held in Gaza for 50 Palestinians whose bodies were recently recovered from the rubble of Israeli attacks. Israel continues to block heavy machinery needed to clear debris, despite its entry being a condition of the ceasefire deal.
Thursday, August 20, 2026
Israel’s Escalating Tactic of Dispossession in the West Bank
Israeli settlers and soldiers are besieging three families in their homes in the village of Qusra as part of a growing attack on Palestinian communities in Area B of the occupied West Bank.
August 20, 2026 - For the 12th consecutive day, three Palestinian families, comprising 10 people, including two young children, have been trapped inside their homes in the occupied West Bank, besieged and terrorized by dozens of armed Israelis—both settlers and soldiers. The family members have been stuck in separate homes, unable to shelter together or attend to their basic needs, with food supplies running dangerously low and without access to cooking gas or a fridge.
The latest Israeli siege targeted a small cluster of Palestinian homes that sit atop a hill on the edge of the village of Qusra, in the southern part of the Nablus governorate in the northern West Bank.
 |
| Israeli soldiers and settlers have been besieging three Palestinian families in their homes in the village of Qusra in the occupied West Bank since August 9. Photo on August 14, 2026 by Issam Rimawi/Anadolu via Getty Images. |
While the siege on the three families has garnered international media attention and statements of condemnation, the attack is not the first of its kind, but rather a more prominent example of a growing tactic by Israeli settlers and soldiers working in tandem to dispossess Palestinians from their homes in the West Bank. The attacks are increasingly focused on Palestinian communities in Area B, a designation under the Oslo Accords where the Palestinian Authority is nominally in charge of civil administration while Israel retains security control.
More HERE
Thursday, August 13, 2026
Israel Removes Genocide Evidence
August 13, 2026 - Israel is removing evidence of its genocide in Gaza, says UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese. She says it needs to stop before it’s too late.
A new Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor report found that nearly 100 Israeli trucks are leaving Gaza every day filled with tonnes of rubble from Israel’s bombardment.
A Journalist Grows Up from "We Are Not Numbers"
Two of her heroes have been killed, but Gaza’s youngest photojournalist isn’t giving up.
Written by Manar el-Sheikh
November 18, 2018
A teenaged girl carried a camera as she approached the field by the border to photograph protesters in Gaza’s Great Return March. She gathered her hair with a red tie and began to run, surrounded by the smoke of burning tires, heading toward the two young men about to scale the fence. She was intent only on capturing the scene in a photo. It was like something out of a Hollywood movie, with the heroine conquering her fear to follow her dreams and serve her people.
The heroine of this story is Menna Murad Qudiah, 14, a girl with deep brown eyes and smooth, rosy skin. She lives in Khuza'a—the site of one of the worst attacks of the 2014 Israeli war against Gaza—and is the youngest journalist to report on the historic, nonviolent protest calling for the right of Palestinians to return to their ancestral homeland.
Menna’s main love is photography, thanks to her Uncle Ihab, a journalist who allowed her to experiment with his camera when she was just 4 years old. But she has many talents:fashion design, poetry recitation, acting and playing piano. Menna is a born performer: She played in a piano recital at the Al-Qattan Center in Gaza City, and her Uncle Ihab filmed her as she sang and recited patriotic poems on the roof of her home during the 2014 Israeli assault. Her deep, yet soft, voice was interrupted by the sound of missiles and raids, but she never stopped singing.
Menna was eager to participate as soon as word of the Great Return March spread, and she smiles broadly as she recalls how she couldn't sleep the night before the first day of the protest, almost as if she was about to go on a school trip. She wasn’t afraid, she says; she was excited. She was a regular participant after that, attending with members of her family: her father, brothers, sometimes her grandfather—and, of course, Uncle Ihab.
An editor for a Saudi Arabian newspaper and a member of the International Federation of Journalists, Ihab long acted as a mentor to Menna. Because he believes in her flair for photography, he lends her his own camera. Her father also is faithful supporter. Even though he does not receive his salary for months at a time, he pays for her to take workshops in journalism.
Detecting that I was wondering about the effect of the protests on her studies, Menna raised her right eyebrow and shook her index finger, admonishing, “Don't worry; I won first place in a contest sponsored by the Ministry of Education for beginning broadcasters.” And then there was a challenge by her history teacher: He asked her to answer three difficult questions, and she answered them all. She turned her room upside down searching for her school schedule to show me. And like any normal early teen, she had decorated it with Hello Kitty stickers.
One day at the protest, Menna inhaled tear gas, causing her eyes, nose and throat to sting and swell. A volunteer paramedic, 21-year-old Razan al-Najjar, rushed to her aid. Later, Menna learned that Razan had been shot by an Israeli sniper while coming to the aid of a protester.
And then there was Yasser Murtaja. It was the morning of April 4 when Menna met Murtaja, a well-known and loved journalist covering the protests. He kindly let her look into the lens of his very sophisticated camera and showed her how to use it. When Menna showed him her own photos of the protesters, he raised his eyebrows in appreciation, and said her work was equal to those of professional photographers. Then, he suggested making a film about her youthful skill and bravery. When she heard his words, her heart soared.
On the day they were scheduled to shoot the short film, Menna told Yasser she needed to finish early because she had homework to do. He smiled and said, "Your camera and your books will scare the soldiers more than any weapons, so do your homework." Instead, he filmed her as she completed her assignments. Sadly, however, the documentary had to be completed by other crew members from the Ain Media Production Company, where Yasser worked. Yasser was shot by an Israeli sniper while covering the second Friday of the Great Return March—a wound that resulted in his death on April 6. He left behind his son, many friends—and his camera. Her mother told me Menna couldn't cry in front of her father and brothers;instead, when she heard the news, she escaped to her room to sob.
Her emotions were still raw when her teacher criticized Murtaja in class because she thought he had not worn a protective vest. Menna raised her hand to speak and corrected the teacher, insisting that he indeed wore his flak jacket. Her teacher challenged her, asking, "How do you know?" Menna replied that she went to the protest daily and was in fact the youngest journalist covering the Great Return March. The entire class, including the teacher, laughed at her in disbelief. Menna left the class in tears.
This incident at first made Menna feel like giving up. But she knew if she didn’t believe in herself, no one else would. She remembered Yasser playing the funny clown, snatching her camera and then fleeing. She remembered the ululating call of the men when they dragged down the barbed-wire fence that penned her people in. She recalled her interview with an old, Bedouin woman, who had been born in Bir al-Saba and forcibly displaced by Israeli gangs in 1948, forcing her to live in Gaza's camps. She had promised this old woman to keep smiling, because a smile is a gesture of defiance, telling Israeli snipers they won’t defeat the Palestinians of Gaza.
Menna believes in the saying, "Success is a simple measurement of the commitment, sacrifice and pain one endures to achieve a dream." So, she continues to work toward her dream of becoming a professional journalist. She now works for an online radio station in Khan Younis, saving money to buy her own camera.
And when Menna met the old, Bedouin woman once again, the first thing she did was to hug her and say, "Thank you for saving me.”
November 18, 2018
A teenaged girl carried a camera as she approached the field by the border to photograph protesters in Gaza’s Great Return March. She gathered her hair with a red tie and began to run, surrounded by the smoke of burning tires, heading toward the two young men about to scale the fence. She was intent only on capturing the scene in a photo. It was like something out of a Hollywood movie, with the heroine conquering her fear to follow her dreams and serve her people.
The heroine of this story is Menna Murad Qudiah, 14, a girl with deep brown eyes and smooth, rosy skin. She lives in Khuza'a—the site of one of the worst attacks of the 2014 Israeli war against Gaza—and is the youngest journalist to report on the historic, nonviolent protest calling for the right of Palestinians to return to their ancestral homeland.
Menna’s main love is photography, thanks to her Uncle Ihab, a journalist who allowed her to experiment with his camera when she was just 4 years old. But she has many talents:fashion design, poetry recitation, acting and playing piano. Menna is a born performer: She played in a piano recital at the Al-Qattan Center in Gaza City, and her Uncle Ihab filmed her as she sang and recited patriotic poems on the roof of her home during the 2014 Israeli assault. Her deep, yet soft, voice was interrupted by the sound of missiles and raids, but she never stopped singing.
Menna was eager to participate as soon as word of the Great Return March spread, and she smiles broadly as she recalls how she couldn't sleep the night before the first day of the protest, almost as if she was about to go on a school trip. She wasn’t afraid, she says; she was excited. She was a regular participant after that, attending with members of her family: her father, brothers, sometimes her grandfather—and, of course, Uncle Ihab.
An editor for a Saudi Arabian newspaper and a member of the International Federation of Journalists, Ihab long acted as a mentor to Menna. Because he believes in her flair for photography, he lends her his own camera. Her father also is faithful supporter. Even though he does not receive his salary for months at a time, he pays for her to take workshops in journalism.
Detecting that I was wondering about the effect of the protests on her studies, Menna raised her right eyebrow and shook her index finger, admonishing, “Don't worry; I won first place in a contest sponsored by the Ministry of Education for beginning broadcasters.” And then there was a challenge by her history teacher: He asked her to answer three difficult questions, and she answered them all. She turned her room upside down searching for her school schedule to show me. And like any normal early teen, she had decorated it with Hello Kitty stickers.
One day at the protest, Menna inhaled tear gas, causing her eyes, nose and throat to sting and swell. A volunteer paramedic, 21-year-old Razan al-Najjar, rushed to her aid. Later, Menna learned that Razan had been shot by an Israeli sniper while coming to the aid of a protester.
And then there was Yasser Murtaja. It was the morning of April 4 when Menna met Murtaja, a well-known and loved journalist covering the protests. He kindly let her look into the lens of his very sophisticated camera and showed her how to use it. When Menna showed him her own photos of the protesters, he raised his eyebrows in appreciation, and said her work was equal to those of professional photographers. Then, he suggested making a film about her youthful skill and bravery. When she heard his words, her heart soared.
On the day they were scheduled to shoot the short film, Menna told Yasser she needed to finish early because she had homework to do. He smiled and said, "Your camera and your books will scare the soldiers more than any weapons, so do your homework." Instead, he filmed her as she completed her assignments. Sadly, however, the documentary had to be completed by other crew members from the Ain Media Production Company, where Yasser worked. Yasser was shot by an Israeli sniper while covering the second Friday of the Great Return March—a wound that resulted in his death on April 6. He left behind his son, many friends—and his camera. Her mother told me Menna couldn't cry in front of her father and brothers;instead, when she heard the news, she escaped to her room to sob.
Her emotions were still raw when her teacher criticized Murtaja in class because she thought he had not worn a protective vest. Menna raised her hand to speak and corrected the teacher, insisting that he indeed wore his flak jacket. Her teacher challenged her, asking, "How do you know?" Menna replied that she went to the protest daily and was in fact the youngest journalist covering the Great Return March. The entire class, including the teacher, laughed at her in disbelief. Menna left the class in tears.
This incident at first made Menna feel like giving up. But she knew if she didn’t believe in herself, no one else would. She remembered Yasser playing the funny clown, snatching her camera and then fleeing. She remembered the ululating call of the men when they dragged down the barbed-wire fence that penned her people in. She recalled her interview with an old, Bedouin woman, who had been born in Bir al-Saba and forcibly displaced by Israeli gangs in 1948, forcing her to live in Gaza's camps. She had promised this old woman to keep smiling, because a smile is a gesture of defiance, telling Israeli snipers they won’t defeat the Palestinians of Gaza.
Menna believes in the saying, "Success is a simple measurement of the commitment, sacrifice and pain one endures to achieve a dream." So, she continues to work toward her dream of becoming a professional journalist. She now works for an online radio station in Khan Younis, saving money to buy her own camera.
And when Menna met the old, Bedouin woman once again, the first thing she did was to hug her and say, "Thank you for saving me.”
Settler terror attacks in West Bank said to surge by 63% in first half of 2026
Security establishment figures show 660 ‘nationalistic’ attacks in six months, up from 405 in prior year, with increase in Palestinian casualties; attacks on Israeli forces rise by 50%
August 10, 2026 - The number of serious incidents of “nationalistic crime” committed by extremist Jewish settlers in the West Bank surged by 63 percent during the first half of 2026 compared to the same period last year, the Kan public broadcaster reported Monday, citing security establishment figures.
 |
| A Palestinian child inspects burned-out cars following an attack by extremist Israeli settlers on Palestinian homes in the village of Jalud, south of Nablus in the West Bank, August 4, 2026. (Nasser Ishtayeh/Flash90) |
Such offenses are classified by Israeli security bodies as terrorism.
According to the report, 660 settler attacks were recorded in the first six months of 2026, up from 405 during the same period in 2025.
More HERE
Monday, August 10, 2026
Can Netanyahu defy Trump on his Gaza peace plan?
Can Netanyahu risk continuing to defy Trump?
Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejects the U.S.-brokered 15-point peace plan for Gaza.
What are the consequences for Palestinians?
And what risks for Netanyahu in defying Donald Trump?
‘We have no one’: Palestinians react to Israel’s rejection of Gaza plan
For Gaza’s residents, Netanyahu’s declaration has reinforced doubts that any deal could bring lasting calm without Israeli withdrawal, reconstruction and guarantees the fighting will not resume.
August 10, 2026 - Palestinians in Gaza have reacted with a mix of scepticism and frustration to Israel’s rejection of a proposed 15-point plan aimed at ending the war and setting out a framework for the future.
 |
| Palestinians in Gaza are facing growing frustration and a loss of hope for the next phase, amid fears of renewed escalation [Abdelhakim Abu Riash/Al Jazeera] |
The United States-backed initiative includes provisions for a phased Israeli withdrawal, the gradual disarmament of Hamas, a Palestinian-led civilian administration and steps towards humanitarian aid and reconstruction.
But on Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel “rejected” the plan, saying its forces will not withdraw until Hamas is “genuinely disarmed”.
More HERE
Saturday, August 8, 2026
How Israel’s occupation fuels resistance
August 8, 2026 - Israel is trapped in a cycle it created. Occupation fuels resistance, and resistance is used to justify more occupation. Near Nablus, that cycle turned deadly yet again: five Palestinians killed as four new outposts were erected. Al Jazeera’s Leila Warah reports.
The Many Faces of Genocide
Heatwave in Gaza compounds Palestinian suffering
August 3, 2026 - Thousands of displaced Palestinians in Gaza are enduring extreme temperatures amid a heatwave. Families sheltering in makeshift plastic tents are using whatever means they can to cool down amid appalling living conditions.
Mass funeral held for 112 members of two Palestinian families
August 4, 2026 - Palestinians in Gaza held a mass funeral for 112 members of the Abu Sharia and al-Hasayna families, nearly three years after they were killed in an Israeli strike. More than 8,000 Palestinians are still believed to remain beneath the rubble across Gaza.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)