The Biden administration has warned Israel that its decision to stop issuing administrative detention orders against Israeli settlers suspected of attacking Palestinians in the occupied West Bank could lead to increased violence in the Palestinian territories, two US officials told Axios.

It is noteworthy that the Israeli occupation security forces use administrative detention against Palestinian citizens, but this measure is also used from time to time to combat Jewish terrorism against Palestinians.

Axios reported that US officials told the site that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin pushed the Biden administration's message in a call with his counterpart, Israel Katz, on Saturday and expressed deep concern about the decision.

According to the website, Katz told Austin that his decision to stop issuing administrative detention orders against settlers was “an internal step taken out of commitment to democratic principles,” and said that the use of such orders against citizens is not permitted in any democracy in the world, including the United States,” according to a statement by the Israeli Defense Ministry.

"Israel strongly opposes violence of any kind against Palestinians, and will act against it through [Israeli forces], law enforcement authorities and public norms - not through undemocratic measures," Katz added.

The Israeli occupation's internal security agency, Shin Bet, uses administrative detention so as not to reveal its sensitive intelligence sources within extremist Jewish settler groups.

Katz said Friday he met with Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar and told him he had decided to stop using administrative detention orders against Jewish settlers in the West Bank and asked him to come up with alternative measures. The Israeli defense minister said his decision was made due to “serious Palestinian terror threats and unjustified international sanctions against the settlers.”

The Biden administration has imposed sanctions on several Jewish settlers and organizations linked to them this year. Behind the scenes: Katz’s decision significantly increases tensions between the Biden administration and Israel, two U.S. officials said.

It is noteworthy that with President Trump taking office in less than two months, there is not much the outgoing administration can do other than express protest in private and public.

One US official told the website that Katz's decision to stop using administrative detention orders against violent settlers is "deeply misguided."

The official added that administrative detention is the only thing that has allowed the Biden administration to claim that Israel is doing something to prevent settler violence. “Now we can’t do that anymore,” the US official said.

The Biden administration says it expects Israel to apply the law equally to Jews and Palestinians in the West Bank, and it also says it expects that administrative detention orders will not be used against Palestinians in the West Bank (alone) and that all terrorism suspects — Jews and Palestinians — will be detained and tried according to the same standards.

The number of Jewish administrative detainees does not exceed ten fingers, while the International Foundation for Solidarity with Palestinian Prisoners (Solidarity) revealed last September that the total number of Palestinian detainees in Israeli occupation prisons reached 9,844 until September 1, without including thousands of detainees from Gaza, in light of their continued enforced disappearance amid the ongoing aggression on the Strip.

The Foundation had published extensive statistics on the number of arrests, their types, categories, areas of distribution, and time periods, and stated that the number of arrests in the West Bank since October 7th had reached 10,700 arrests until September 12th, according to the Palestinian Prisoners Club.

The Foundation stated that the number of prisoners held in administrative detention reached 3323, according to the Center for the Defense of the Individual (HaMoked), including (25) female prisoners held in administrative detention, including 4 female journalists, one of whom is a nursing mother and a lawyer, and that there are at least 41 children and 24 journalists, according to the Palestinian Prisoners Club.

8,872 is the number of administrative detention cases after October 7, including new orders and renewal orders, including orders against children and women until September 12, and 2,848 prisoners are detained awaiting trial, 2,061 prisoners are sentenced, and 3,600 prisoners are forcibly disappeared, in addition to 1,612 prisoners from Gaza who the occupation classified as “illegal combatants.”

Bassem Abu Jari: Gaza children are facing a war of extermination and suffering from catastrophic living and health conditions, in addition to the paralysis of the educational process

Khaled Qazmar: The martyrdom of more than 20,000 children and the injury of more than 40,000 in Gaza after October 7 confirms the existence of genocide

Abdullah Al-Zaghari: Since October 7, the arrest of about 770 children from the West Bank has been monitored... and hundreds from Gaza have been subjected to enforced disappearance

Hilmi Al-Araj: The occupation authorities seek to terrorize children and keep them in a constant state of fear in order to kill their fighting spirit

Wissam Sahweil: The shocking and repeated scenes of killing, violence and destruction cause serious psychological disorders among Palestinian children

Dr. Samah Jaber: The children of Gaza are living a very dangerous and unbearable reality and are facing enormous trauma that will take years to recover from.

The targeting of Palestinian children, especially in the Gaza Strip, is being systematically and increasingly carried out by the Israeli occupation, amidst catastrophic humanitarian conditions resulting from the genocidal war that has come to threaten their existence and identity.

Officials and experts, in separate interviews with “I”, confirm that these crimes have been revealed in an unprecedented manner, with a significant increase in the number of martyrs and wounded among children, estimated at more than 20,000 martyrs and tens of thousands wounded, in addition to the destruction of health and educational facilities, which makes the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip more tragic, indicating that these practices shed light on systematic attempts to erase the identity of Palestinian children and threaten their future.

They point out that the description given by the Commissioner-General of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, of what is happening, saying: “Gaza has become a graveyard for children,” reflects the extent of the tragedy that children are experiencing there, which threatens their existence and psychological stability.

Genocide crimes are committed using all means

Bassem Younis Abu Jari, an academic researcher at the Al Mezan Center for Human Rights in Gaza, confirms that the Gaza Strip is witnessing an ongoing genocide committed by the Israeli occupation forces, targeting the civilian population, especially children, who constitute about 47% of the total population.

He explains that the crimes of genocide are carried out using all means that cause the utmost suffering, as children are killed and seriously injured, and they suffer from catastrophic living, health and educational conditions.

Abu Jarri confirms that the statistics on the killing of children since October 7, 2023 until now are shocking, in addition to deaths resulting from epidemics or hunger, which have been exacerbated by the lack of aid and food supplies. Thousands of children suffer from severe injuries that have caused permanent disabilities and deformities as a result of the use of lethal weapons and the indiscriminate bombing of civilian objects.

Abu Jari points out that children are facing unprecedented tragic conditions, as they are forced to stand in long lines to get water or at the doors of the takayas to get a little food, or suffer from the cold. In addition, children are subjected to detention in harsh conditions, including beatings and deprivation of food for long periods.

Researcher Abu Jari points out that the number of children who lost one or both parents due to the war is estimated at about 35,060 children, and these children live in an extremely dangerous environment, especially since most of the residents of the Strip have been displaced from their homes and are now living in tents that lack the most basic necessities of life.

Abu Jari explains that about 74% of the current tents have become unusable, with 100,000 tents out of 135,000 needing immediate replacement. Under these circumstances, the displaced people - including children - are suffering from a severe shortage of food and desalinated water, as well as lacking heating and winter clothing, at a time when the occupation authorities are preventing the import of clothing and consider it "non-essential needs."

Lack of health care and paralysis of the educational process

Abu Jari confirms that children in the Gaza Strip also suffer from a lack of health care due to the targeting of medical facilities and health personnel and the prevention of the entry of medicines. The educational process has also been completely paralyzed after schools and educational facilities were targeted, and have been transformed into shelters for the displaced.

Abu Jari explains that thousands of students and teachers were killed as a result of the Israeli bombing, while kindergartens, schools and universities were widely destroyed.

Abu Jarri stresses that depriving Palestinians of their right to education represents a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law and international human rights law, noting that education is an important means of progress and development, and helps individuals and communities resist the occupation and escape the cycle of poverty and marginalization.

Abu Jari points out that the people of Gaza - including children - live in a state of insecurity, as there is no safe area in the Strip, as homes are bombed over the heads of their inhabitants, and schools and shelters affiliated with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) are targeted with missiles. He explains that these conditions make Gaza like a "cemetery for children", as about 43 children have been killed every day since the beginning of the war.

Abu Jari points out that children suffer from malnutrition as a result of the war of extermination in the Strip, in addition to diseases resulting from water pollution, including drinking water.

Abu Jarri stresses the need for the international community to move urgently and effectively to force Israel to stop the crimes of genocide and impose a ceasefire in Gaza, in implementation of the UN Security Council resolutions.

Abu Jari stresses the importance of prosecuting perpetrators of crimes against civilians and children and ending the state of impunity, calling for a halt to the supply of weapons and ammunition to Israel.

Abu Jari calls on UN agencies and international institutions to intensify their efforts to pressure the occupation authorities to stop the violations and ensure the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza.

Abu Jari stresses that protecting the rights of Palestinian children, including their right to life, education and health, must be a top priority in the face of this humanitarian catastrophe.

Abu Jarri explains that this crisis requires immediate international action to save the children of Gaza from their tragic fate, which reflects the extent of the suffering experienced by the Gaza Strip due to the genocidal war it has been subjected to for nearly 14 months continuously.

Unprecedented escalation in targeting children's basic rights

Khaled Qazmar, Director General of the Defense for Children International - Palestine, confirms that the Israeli occupation’s targeting of Palestinian children is not new, but rather a systematic policy since the beginning of the Israeli occupation of Palestine. However, what happened after October 7, 2023 constituted an unprecedented escalation in targeting the basic rights of Palestinian children, especially their right to life, which was violated by large-scale mass killings.

According to Qazmar, the number of Palestinian children killed in the Gaza Strip after October 7 exceeded 20,000, some of whom are still under the rubble, while more than 40,000 were injured with varying degrees of severity. These numbers do not only reflect the number of victims, but also reveal a crime of genocide carried out by the occupation authorities against defenseless civilians, with a focus on children who constitute the future of the Palestinian people.

Qazmar stresses that the Israeli occupation, as a force established under international law, is obligated to provide and guarantee children’s basic rights, most importantly the right to life. However, the reality indicates the opposite, as policies of mass killing and systematic destruction are being practiced in the Gaza Strip.

Qazmar points out that the right to education represents a direct goal in the occupation’s policies. Since the beginning of the war of extermination, the Gaza Strip has lost the basic components of education, as more than 830 schools were destroyed according to statistics from the Ministry of Education, and most of the remaining schools were turned into centers to shelter civilians who lost their homes.

Qazmar points out that in addition to this, more than 12,000 school children were killed, and more than 600 teachers were martyred. This destruction has made the educational process almost impossible, as the priority now is to preserve the lives of children in light of the indiscriminate bombing and targeting of population centers.

Depriving children of education is a crime that aims to erase their memory

According to Qazmar, the West Bank witnessed the targeting of education in a different way, through attempts to obliterate the Palestinian identity by attempts to distort the Palestinian curriculum and impose curricula that are in line with the occupation’s narrative, or the disruption of schools due to incursions.

Qazmar stresses that depriving Palestinian children of their right to education is a crime that aims to erase the Palestinian child’s memory and cultural identity, which threatens his future and prevents him from forming his personality and national identity.

In addition to education, the health sector has been hit hard, making it almost impossible to provide medical care to children. Hospitals have been destroyed, medicines and medical equipment are no longer accessible due to the blockade, and injured children are not receiving treatment, leading to a daily increase in deaths, Qazmar explains.

Food and water were used as weapons of war against civilians.

Qazmar points out that the occupation used food and water as a weapon of war against civilians, especially children, and basic food and medical supplies were cut off, which forced thousands of children to face the risk of famine and displacement.

Although the severity of crimes in the West Bank is less than in Gaza, Qazmar confirms that the policy of targeting children continues. Since the beginning of this year, more than 88 Palestinian children have been killed in the West Bank.

Qazmar points out that these crimes would not have occurred without the international partnership with the Israeli occupation, which consists of providing political protection and military and financial support to the occupying state. Countries such as the United States, Britain and Germany continue to supply Israel with weapons, while providing political cover that prevents it from being held accountable in international forums.

Qazmar asserts that the statements of international officials, such as the Commissioner-General of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, who said that “Gaza has become a graveyard for children,” which intersect with previous statements by the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, expose the shame of countries that claim human rights and protect international law, turning a blind eye to what is happening in the Gaza Strip because the criminal is the Israeli occupation.

Regarding the required efforts, Qazmar calls for activating the international accountability system, including the role of the International Criminal Court in prosecuting Israeli war criminals.

Qazmar confirms that the continued international silence and the complicity of some major countries with the crimes of the occupation is the main reason for the aggravation and continuation of these crimes.

Qazmar asserts that what is happening in Palestine today is a systematic targeting of Palestinian children with the aim of destroying their psychological, educational and health structures. These crimes do not only threaten the present, but also target the future of the entire Palestinian people, in an attempt to obliterate their identity and kill their spirit of resistance.

Qazmar stresses that the basic rights of Palestinian children, which include the right to life, education, health, and food, are not just slogans, but are rights guaranteed under international laws and conventions. However, these rights are violated daily in front of the eyes and ears of the international community, which stands helpless or complicit in the face of these crimes.

Qazmar believes that saving Palestinian children and ensuring their rights requires real international political will that puts an end to these crimes and restores to children their right to a dignified life and a secure future.

large-scale reprisals

The head of the Prisoners Club, Abdullah Al-Zaghari, confirms that the Israeli occupation has continued to systematically target Palestinian children since the beginning of its occupation of the Palestinian territories, but these policies have escalated in an unprecedented manner after October 7.

Al-Zaghari explains that this deliberate targeting of children is part of a large-scale revenge operation against the Palestinian people, where children’s childhood is stolen and their dreams are shattered, leaving devastating effects on their present and future.

Al-Zaghari points out that Palestinian children are living in a state of hysteria as a result of being directly targeted by the occupation, and are suffering from severe psychological effects.

Al-Zaghari asserts that the occupation seeks, through these policies of killing, arrest, and targeting education, to destroy the infrastructure of Palestinian society, in an attempt to kill the morale of the entire Palestinian people.

Mass arrests of children, torture, starvation... and enforced disappearance

Regarding the West Bank, Al-Zaghari explains that the targeting of children has increased significantly, as the period since October 7 has witnessed the arrest of about 770 children, 270 of whom are still languishing in the occupation’s prisons, where they have been subjected to all kinds of violations, including torture, starvation, deprivation of their basic rights, and continuous insults, in addition to the martyrdom of a large number of children in the West Bank.

Al-Zaghari points out that hundreds of children from the Gaza Strip were arrested and then subjected to a policy of enforced disappearance, where they were subjected to all kinds of violations. There are no accurate statistics about them, as there are other prisoners from Gaza who are subjected to a policy of systematic torture and enforced disappearance after October 7.

Al-Zaghari points out that many of these children who were arrested were subjected to medical crimes and systematic physical and psychological violations, as what is known as “scabies” spread among them. In Jerusalem, the occupation has imposed house arrest on dozens of Palestinian children since October 7, and an increase in the length of sentences imposed on children has been observed.

He stressed that the occupation's policies are not limited to arrest and physical assault, but extend to targeting the educational system of Palestinian children. Many children have been prevented from returning to their schools as a result of the siege and military operations, which is part of the occupation's strategy to keep Palestinian generations ignorant and destroy the educational infrastructure.

Al-Zaghari criticizes the international community’s inability to force the Israeli occupation to implement international agreements related to children’s rights, including the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Al-Zaghari explains that the international system, including the Security Council and the Human Rights Council, has failed to take decisive action to impose these obligations on the occupying state, which encourages it to continue committing its violations without any deterrent.

Al-Zaghari calls on the major international powers that dominate the Security Council and the Human Rights Council to urgently intervene to force the occupying state to abide by international laws and agreements related to children’s rights.

Al-Zaghari stresses that implementing these laws is an essential step to protect Palestinian children from ongoing violations and ensure their future free from fear and suffering.

Al-Zaghari explains that what is required is not only condemnation, but also taking actual steps to ensure that the occupation is held accountable for its crimes, and to stop the violations that affect Palestinian children on a daily basis, to ensure a safe childhood and a better future for these children who suffer under the yoke of the occupation.

Fascist ideology calling for the elimination of Palestinians

Hilmi Al-Araj, Director of the Center for Freedoms and Defense of Civil Rights (Hurriyat), confirms that targeting children by the Israeli occupation represents part of a systematic policy to terrorize this generation, and aims to kill children in the context of a genocide targeting the Palestinian people.

Al-Araj explains that the occupation is persisting in committing crimes against children to ensure that they do not grow up to become men who constitute an integral part of the Palestinian people and their resistance.

Al-Araj points out that these policies fall within a fascist Israeli ideology that calls for the elimination of Palestinians, including children, on the pretext that they are “potential fighters” in the future.

Al-Araj points out that this Israeli approach is not new, as this language has been used for many years, and is clearly evident in the statements of Israeli officials who consider even children a threat.

Al-Araj says: “These policies are not only related to the events of October 7, but they reflect an ideological program of this fascist government, which has announced its program known as the decisive program since assuming power. This program gives the Palestinian people three options: submission, departure, or death and imprisonment.”

Regarding Lazzarini's statements, who described Gaza as a "children's graveyard," Al-Araj asserts that this statement came because children and women constitute 70% of the total of more than 44,000 martyrs who were killed as a result of the ongoing Israeli aggression.

Al-Araj says: “What makes the situation even more tragic is that women in Gaza are being punished for giving birth to these children, as if the occupation is punishing mothers for giving birth to the next generation.”

Al-Araj explains that the goal of these policies is not limited to killing children only, but extends to trying to make them ignorant, displace them, and break their will.

Al-Araj says: “The occupation seeks to terrorize children and keep them in a constant state of fear, with the aim of killing their fighting spirit, but the Palestinian experience confirms that these crimes did not break the will of previous generations and will not break the current generation, but rather increase their determination to freedom.”

Al-Araj points out that the children of Gaza will ask themselves in the future why they were targeted with such brutality, and why their homes were bombed and their families killed by American planes in full view of the world.

Al-Araj says: “Despite these tragic circumstances, the Palestinian person by nature looks forward to hope and freedom, and the occupation’s attempts to subjugate him will not succeed,” calling on the international community to take urgent action to hold the Israeli occupation accountable for its crimes.

Al-Araj says: “Despite the issuance of international resolutions, such as the International Court of Justice’s resolution and the Security Council’s resolutions, the world’s silence in the face of this genocide is astonishing. What is required today is an international awakening that ends this silence and puts pressure on the occupation.”

Al-Araj stresses the importance of the role of international organizations, such as the United Nations and UNICEF, in holding the occupation accountable, stressing that the decision of the International Criminal Court to issue arrest warrants against Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Galant represents the beginning of the path towards achieving international justice and ensuring the provision of protection and rights for Palestinian children.

Depriving children of their most basic rights guaranteed by international laws

Director of the Research and Documentation Department at the Treatment and Rehabilitation Center for Victims of Torture, Wissam Sahweil, confirms that Palestinian childhood is living through one of the most tragic and complex conditions in the world, in light of the Israeli occupation and its ongoing oppressive policies.

Sahweil explains that Palestinian children are deprived of their most basic rights guaranteed by international laws, such as the right to life, security, education and health care.

Sahweil points out that the Israeli occupation deliberately targets children directly, whether through aerial bombardment, live ammunition, or even bombs, which leads to the killing and wounding of thousands of them. These injuries often leave permanent physical and psychological effects on the children, deepening their suffering and limiting their ability to live a normal life.

Sahweil points out that what the Israeli occupation is doing is not limited to killing and wounding, but also includes demolishing homes and displacing families, which deprives children of a safe and stable environment.

Sahweil points out that the occupation arrests hundreds of children annually and throws them into prisons in harsh conditions, where they are subjected to physical and psychological abuse, in flagrant violation of international treaties that stipulate the protection of children’s rights.

Sahweil explains that the repeated and shocking scenes of killing and destruction lead to serious psychological disorders in Palestinian children, such as chronic fear, nightmares, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The loss of friends and family members due to violence also leaves deep wounds in their souls and increases their feelings of despair.

Regarding education, Sahweil explains that many schools are being bombed or closed, which prevents children from completing their studies.

Sahweil points out that Israeli measures such as security checkpoints make it difficult to access educational institutions, which increases the suffering of students.

Sahweil stresses that depriving children of education does not only affect individuals, but also extends to strike at the future of the entire Palestinian people, creating generations suffering from frustration and despair.

Sahweil stresses that targeting Palestinian children is not random, but rather part of a systematic Israeli policy aimed at weakening Palestinian society.

Sahweil explains that this policy creates a state of terror and fear among families, and weakens social ties, which leads to the destruction of the Palestinian social structure.

Sahweil stresses that targeting children represents a serious violation of international law, pointing out that the international community bears a great responsibility to protect these children and guarantee their rights.

Sahweil points out that the absence of effective international accountability encourages the occupation to continue its violations, calling for documenting these crimes and building legal files to prosecute perpetrators of war crimes.

Sahweil expressed his concern about the impact of these violations on the formation of Palestinian children’s personalities, explaining that the affected generations may suffer from mental and social disorders that prevent them from being able to build a stable future.

Sahweil stresses that the continuation of crimes against children threatens the Palestinian national ambition, pointing to the need to resume the educational process urgently and to enhance efforts to hold the occupation accountable.

Sahweil points out that crimes against Palestinian children are not subject to a statute of limitations, citing the prosecution of perpetrators of crimes in Bosnia and Herzegovina as an example of the possibility of achieving justice.

Sahweil calls on the international community to take concrete steps to stop Israeli violations against Palestinian children and ensure a safe future for them.

Losses in mental and physical health

Dr. Samah Jabr, head of the mental health unit at the Ministry of Health, describes the reality of childhood in Gaza as “very dangerous,” noting that children there are facing enormous trauma as a result of the ongoing Israeli aggression, and need years to recover.

Jabr explains that the interruption of education, in addition to the losses in mental and physical health, is one of the biggest challenges.

“The loss of education is not limited to the decline in children’s cognitive abilities, but also includes the absence of the social and psychological framework that nurtures their natural development,” says Jabr.

Jabr stresses that the extent of the trauma that children in Gaza have been exposed to requires many years to recover from, as these losses deepen the children’s tragedy and make them live in an environment that is not suitable for their natural growth.

Jabr addresses the phenomenon of “role reversal,” where children bear the burdens of adults, whether by taking care of their younger siblings, or doing tasks beyond their capacity, such as carrying water or caring for their injured parents, which deprives them of living their childhood and negatively affects their psychological and social development.

Dr. Jabr asserts that targeting children in Gaza represents a direct targeting of the future of Palestine, saying: “Children are the future of Palestine, and those who seek to exterminate the Palestinian people want to end the existence of healthy Palestinians in the future.”

Jabr asserts that describing Gaza as a “children’s graveyard” is an accurate description, after more than 20,000 children were martyred, in addition to the large numbers of children who were left without direct adult care, due to the loss of their fathers or guardians.

Jabr stresses that the suffering is not only in the number of martyrs, but also extends to the deteriorating quality of life of the surviving children, who live in constant fear and daily terror that makes their lives closer to death.

She says: “Gaza is no longer just a big prison as we described it before, but today it has become a big cemetery in which childhood and the future are buried.”

Serious consequences of destroying educational institutions in Gaza

Dr. Jabr spoke about the serious consequences of the destruction of educational institutions in Gaza, considering that the current loss of education exceeds what happened during the Covid-19 pandemic, where education was affected globally but only partially, while in Gaza, the loss of education means the complete destruction of schools and the shattering of hopes for education for years to come.

Jabr expressed her surprise at the “global silence” over this destruction, which contradicts international positions supporting the right to education.

Jabr stressed that addressing this catastrophic situation requires urgent political efforts to stop the Israeli aggression, killing and displacement, noting that urgent humanitarian relief has become an urgent necessity to meet the basic needs of the Palestinians.

“We are talking about a tragic situation of starvation and lack of basic necessities, which is unbearable and must stop immediately,” says Jabr.

A 4x4 tent, with eleven people crowded into it, stands on the beach. If its inhabitants survive the waves, they fall under the rain gutters that turn the tent into an uninhabitable place, after the mattresses and blankets are soaked in a way that puts it out of service, and leaves its inhabitants, most of whom are children, suffering from the sting of the cold that shakes their hearts, makes their eyes cry, and freezes their tender bodies, as if they were sleeping in a refrigerator.

Scenes of children inside tents pierce my memory, which is full of trembling bodies, chattering teeth, and frozen limbs, in the early days of asylum in brick camps filled with cracks and crevices, drowning in piles of snow that we would wake up to, and the doors were closed on us before the shovels succeeded in opening safe passages to prevent slipping and ensure the movement of the way there, but not the return for those who began searching for woods in the neighboring mountains, hoping to restore warmth to the trembling hearts and blood to the frozen veins.

We were looking forward to implementing the right of return and the partition resolution of 1948, and then we find ourselves, after the “flood of liberation,” returning to the refugee tents. The aggressors began dividing the brick camps and displacement tents over the heads of children and women with fire belts and drones, so that the remains are scattered under the rubble, and those who were destined to live are displaced to places where life is nonexistent.

Oh God, how hard life is under the pandemic of fear, hunger, terrorism and terror..!

Stop the genocide now..!

Today, Monday, the Israeli occupation forces launched an arrest campaign in the West Bank and occupied Jerusalem.

In Bethlehem, the occupation forces arrested Mahmoud Rateb Al-Amour (19 years old) and Mahdi Muhammad Al-Amour (19 years old) after raiding and searching their homes in the town of Tuqu.

In Jenin, the occupation forces arrested the young man Adam Mahmoud Al-Sharif after raiding his house and ransacking its contents in the village of Rummana.

In Jericho, the occupation forces stormed Aqabat Jaber camp and arrested the two young men, Muhammad Raji al-Nattour and Abdul Rahman Saleh, after raiding their families’ homes and interrogating them.

In occupied Jerusalem, the two young men, Omar Muhammad Rayyan and Karam Muhammad Daoud, were arrested after raiding their homes in Beit Daqqu, while a third young man, whose identity has not yet been determined, was arrested during the raid on the Shuafat camp.

A child and a young man were killed by Israeli occupation forces, Sunday evening, in the town of Ya'bad, southwest of Jenin.

Local sources reported that the occupation forces stormed the town from its eastern entrance, and clashes erupted during which soldiers fired live bullets, leading to the martyrdom of the child Muhammad Rabi Jamal Hamarsheh (13 years old) and the young man Ahmad Mahmoud Zaid (20 years old).

According to medical sources and eyewitnesses, the occupation soldiers fired live bullets intensively and from a close range at the child Hamarsheh and the young man Zaid, which resulted in them being hit by several bullets, especially in the upper parts of their bodies.

The occupation prevented ambulances from reaching Hamarsheh and Zaid until they confirmed their martyrdom, adding that the bodies of the two victims were transferred to the Ya'bad Emergency Center.

This evening, Sunday, the Israeli occupation forces warned 12 buildings to evacuate in the areas of Burj al-Barajneh, Ghobeiry, Haret Hreik, Choueifat al-Amrousieh, and Hadath, in the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital, Beirut, in preparation for bombing them.

This evening, the occupation warplanes broke the sound barrier over Beirut and its suburbs, reaching the Chouf, according to what was reported by the official Lebanese News Agency.

The ongoing Israeli aggression on Lebanon since October 8, 2023, has resulted in 3,670 dead and 15,413 wounded, including a large number of children and women, in addition to about 1.4 million displaced persons. Most of the victims and displaced persons were recorded after September 23, according to official Lebanese data announced until Saturday evening.

The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation said on Sunday that the agreement with Lebanon was "done," while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is considering how to announce it.

The agency quoted a prominent Israeli security source as saying that Israel "gave US envoy Amos Hochstein the green light to move forward towards an agreement in Lebanon."

The source confirmed that "Netanyahu will hold limited security consultations with the ministers on Sunday night, and the discussions will now focus on the freedom of action of the Israeli army in the Syrian-Lebanese border area."

According to the Broadcasting Authority, Israel received guarantees from the United States of "freedom of action in the event of a breach of the agreement."

"If we do not reach a ceasefire agreement soon, the Lebanese state will also pay the price," an Israeli security official said.

Israeli opposition leader Benny Gantz has called for an attack on Lebanon's official assets, which have so far been left out of the equation.

On the X platform, Gantz wrote: “The Lebanese government is giving Hezbollah a free hand. It is time to act forcefully against its assets.”

At least 15 citizens were injured, Sunday evening, when a rocket fell on Tulkarm camp.

The head of the Popular Committee for Services in Tulkarm Camp, Faisal Salama, told the WAFA news agency that 15 citizens, including women, were injured by shrapnel from a rocket that fell on an abandoned house belonging to the Sheikh Ali family, in the Harat al-Murabba’a area of the camp.

He added that the injured were transferred to the Shahid Thabet Thabet Governmental Hospital in the city, and their condition was described as moderate to minor.

Local sources indicated that the source of the missile was not specified, whether it was from Lebanon or from the interceptor missiles launched by the Israeli occupation.

In a damning and critical report on the conduct of Israeli occupation forces, The New York Times revealed on Sunday that residents of the occupied West Bank say that Israeli occupation forces are adopting tactics similar to those they used and are using in Gaza, including airstrikes and using Palestinians as human shields.

The newspaper quotes Nasser Damaj, a Palestinian citizen from Jenin, as saying that Israeli soldiers grabbed his arms from each side, led him through the streets to the ruined structure of a mosque, and then to an ancient underground cave, and that when they ordered him to come down, he realized why: he was being used as a human shield.

“They wanted me to explore what was downstairs, to protect them,” Damaj said.

He said he protested, but the three soldiers and their commander, with their assault rifles pointed at him, forced him to investigate what the Israeli occupation forces later called an "underground combat facility."

“Be careful,” Damaj recalls the commander telling him as the soldiers handed him a drone so they could survey the cave. “Don’t break it. It’s expensive.”

“This incident, confirmed by eyewitnesses, did not occur in Gaza, where Israeli forces illegally forced Palestinians to perform dangerous tasks to avoid risking the lives of Israeli soldiers in the war there,” the paper says. “It occurred in the occupied West Bank, where residents say Israeli forces are adopting tactics similar to those deployed in Gaza, including airstrikes and using Palestinians as human shields.”

The 10-day Israeli raid on Damaj's hometown of Jenin was part of a broader military offensive on Palestinian territory that began in late August as part of an intensification of Israeli attacks in the West Bank.

Before October 7, 2023, Israeli airstrikes on the West Bank were relatively rare, experts said, with only a handful of confirmed cases. But during the raids in Jenin and other Palestinian areas that began in August, the Israeli military acknowledged carrying out about 50 airstrikes in the occupied West Bank.

More than 180 people have been killed in airstrikes on the Jenin area in the past year, including dozens of children, according to the United Nations and the Palestinian human rights group Al-Haq. The Israeli military has declined to provide a death toll, but has claimed that “98 percent” of those killed in airstrikes were “involved in terrorist activities,” the newspaper reported.

The strikes have caused extensive damage to roads, power grids, water and sewage lines. Local and international aid workers and the United Nations say Israel has obstructed their relief efforts, while videos verified by The New York Times show Israeli bulldozers blocking emergency vehicles. Rather than calling them raids, residents, aid workers and some experts have likened what is happening in the West Bank to war.

The newspaper referred in its report to the continuous sound of Israeli drones conducting surveillance and air strikes.

"It's the Gaza of the northern West Bank," Nadav Weiman, director of Breaking the Silence, a human rights group made up of former Israeli soldiers who say they are collecting testimonies from soldiers who took part in raids in Jenin and Tulkarm, is quoted in the report as saying.

The overall military approach used in the West Bank was known as the “Dahiya Doctrine,” said Fayman, who heads Breaking the Silence, an advocacy group for former Israeli soldiers, referring to Israel’s destruction of the Dahiya, a group of neighborhoods in southern Beirut that were a stronghold of Hezbollah, during its 34-day war in Lebanon in 2006. The tactic creates disproportionate damage to civilian infrastructure and is intended to try to cause so much damage and destruction that civilians will turn against the armed groups in their areas, he said.

Raids on Palestinian areas in the West Bank have become commonplace since the October 7 attacks last year. In addition to armed drones, bulldozers have torn up roads, which the Israeli military says are meant to uncover explosives buried under the pavement.

But the strikes in the past few months have been among the most comprehensive and deadly in the West Bank in two decades.

The Israeli military described the raids as a "counter-terrorism operation" to eliminate Palestinian militant groups and combat increasing attacks against Israelis, including shootings and attempted car bombings. The violence has been accompanied by an increase in attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank by Israeli settlers who often operate with impunity.

The Israeli military claims that in its operations in the West Bank it has killed or detained dozens of fighters, seized explosives and destroyed command and control centers. It added that it carried out airstrikes "in situations where arrests could not be made due to a real threat to the forces."

The military’s actions in the West Bank have long been shrouded in secrecy, but experts said Israel has largely refrained from airstrikes in the area since the end of the second intifada, nearly 20 years ago. Israel has occasionally used attack helicopters in select operations, but experts said that has happened in only a handful of instances they know of over the two decades.

The newspaper says that the Israeli army’s deployment of armed drones was extremely rare, but it is a phenomenon that began to appear in 2022, but only a few cases were confirmed before October 7, 2023. Salim al-Saadi, a member of the local neighborhood council in Jenin, told the newspaper: “We call Jenin a small Gaza.”

Since then, the Israeli occupation forces have carried out dozens of strikes in the northern areas of the West Bank, largely concentrated in the cities and towns of Jenin, Tulkarm, Nablus and Tubas.

On visits to Jenin, Tubas and Tulkarm, The Times came across multiple accounts of Palestinians forced to perform potentially dangerous tasks for Israeli soldiers. The devastation caused by the explosions was widespread, leaving families struggling.

On August 26, Israeli forces carried out an airstrike in the Nur Shams refugee camp in Tulkarm on what they described as an “operations room,” killing five people, including 15-year-old Adnan Jaber, whom Israel accused of manufacturing explosives.

"The Israeli news immediately announced that they had killed a terrorist," said Adnan's father, Ayser Jaber. "But he was a little boy, not a terrorist."

Jaber said his son was taking lessons to become a barber: “He had about two weeks left, then he was killed.”

On August 28, an Israeli aircraft bombed what the military described as militants in an alley in the Far’a refugee camp. Residents said a house was also hit, killing two brothers, Mohammed Masoud Mohammed Naja, 17, and Murad Masoud Mohammed Naja, 13, and seriously wounding a third brother and the boys’ father.

In September, the Israeli military said its aircraft had struck "terrorists who threw explosives and fired at security forces" and "eliminated" a person "armed with an explosive device."

Residents said Israeli soldiers shot Majed Fida Abu Zeina, 17, opened fire on ambulances that tried to rescue him, and eventually used a bulldozer to dump his body outside the camp.

"The soldiers do whatever they want," said his mother, Amal Abu Zeina.

According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians, the raids in Jenin and other cities over a 10-day period killed 51 people. Seven children were among the dead, according to the United Nations. On the morning of August 28, as Israeli forces launched their strikes on Jenin, Tulkarm and Tubas, then-Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz posted on social media: “We must deal with the threat in the same way we deal with the terror infrastructure in Gaza.” Human rights groups and aid workers warn of what they call dangerous similarities.

“We all feel that the Gaza pattern, the modus operandi, is now being applied to the West Bank, and that is very worrying,” Allegra Pacheco, who leads a consortium of Western-backed aid organizations in the West Bank, was quoted as saying by the newspaper. “The current Israeli government’s goals in the West Bank are to force Palestinians out of targeted areas using the same kind of massive force, weapons and destruction as in Gaza.”

UN officials have warned of “lethal warfare tactics” in the West Bank, and tried to enter Jenin to conduct an assessment, but were denied entry by Israeli authorities, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in September.

Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper said that the Israeli government approved the proposal of the Minister of Communications to have government bodies sever their ties with Haaretz newspaper.

The Israeli government voted unanimously to boycott Haaretz, considering its positions offensive to Israel.

According to the government, this comes "after a series of articles and positions offensive to Israel, which reached its peak with the newspaper's publisher, Amos Schocken, considering Palestinian resistance fighters "freedom fighters" and calling for sanctions to be imposed on the Netanyahu government (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu)."

The government considered it "unreasonable for an Israeli newspaper to defend Israel's enemies and call for sanctions against it at a time when the state is waging war and facing international efforts to delegitimize it."

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said on Sunday that Israel's targeting of the Lebanese army is a "bloody message rejecting all efforts and ongoing contacts to reach a ceasefire" between Tel Aviv and Hezbollah.

This came in a statement by the Lebanese Prime Minister, after the army announced the martyrdom of one of its members and the injury of 18 others in an Israeli raid on a military center in Amiriya, southern Lebanon.

Mikati stated that "the Israeli enemy's direct targeting today (Sunday) of an army center in the south, and the fall of martyrs and wounded, represents a direct bloody message rejecting all efforts and ongoing contacts to reach a ceasefire, strengthen the army's presence in the south, and implement international resolution 1701."

He added: "This direct aggression is added to the series of repeated attacks on the Lebanese army and civilians, and it is a matter for the international community to remain silent about what is happening to Lebanon."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has again asked to postpone his testimony in his corruption trial scheduled for December 2, citing recent arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court.

On Thursday, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for both Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant on charges of committing crimes against humanity and war crimes in Gaza.

The private Israeli Channel (13) said on Sunday: Netanyahu "submitted today to the Central Court in Jerusalem another request to postpone his testimony for 15 days."

He claimed that "the defense team is not yet ready for testimony that is scheduled to begin next week."

The Al-Qassam Brigades stated that its fighters were able to engage an Israeli infantry force of 10 soldiers at point-blank range, killing and wounding them east of Rafah.

It also confirmed that it targeted a military vehicle with a "105" Al-Yassin shell north of Awad Tower in the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.

She added: "We destroyed a Merkava tank with a guided missile on the eastern outskirts of the town of Al-Bayada, killing and wounding its crew."

The head of the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, Minister Mu'ayyad Shaaban, confirmed that the Israeli occupation forces confiscated more than 52 thousand dunums of West Bank land during the current year, as part of colonial expansion plans and the displacement of citizens, especially after the events of October 7, 2023.

This came during his visit to Jenin Governorate, where he was received by Governor Kamal Abu al-Rab at the governorate headquarters, in the presence of a number of officials and local leaders.

Governor Abu al-Rub praised the efforts of the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission at all levels, both legal and popular, to confront Israeli attacks and support the steadfastness of citizens in areas threatened with confiscation. He reviewed the conditions of the villages that suffer from the escalation of attacks by settlers and occupation forces, which target farmers and their property.

For his part, Minister Shaaban pointed to the continuation of demolitions and forced displacement, especially in Bedouin communities, the expansion of military checkpoints and the erection of iron gates in various areas. He stressed the Authority's commitment to supporting citizens and farmers, including assistance during the olive harvest season and strengthening their presence in areas adjacent to the settlements.

As part of his visit, Shaaban visited the village of Jalboun, east of Jenin, where he met its residents and learned about their daily suffering due to Israeli attacks. He also met with families affected by the demolition of homes and agricultural houses, stressing that the Commission will provide urgent assistance to them to alleviate their suffering.

The Minister stressed the importance of strengthening citizens' steadfastness in the face of the occupation's attempts to impose a new reality on the ground, stressing that collective action and national solidarity form the basis for confronting these challenges.

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) confirmed that the flour and food supplies allowed by the Israeli occupation to enter through the crossings do not meet 6% of the population’s needs, which has caused a severe crisis, especially in obtaining bread, which has led to the closure of most bakeries in the southern Gaza Strip.

UNRWA explained that more than two million displaced people in the Gaza Strip are besieged by hunger, thirst, disease and fear, and that obtaining meals has become an impossible task for families in the Strip.

She pointed out that the conditions of the displaced in displacement tents and shelters are tragic, in light of hunger and cold, and the inability of international organizations to meet the needs of the displaced, due to the scarcity of food and nutrition, calling for a complete opening of the crossings, and the entry of what the population needs to reduce the famine that has exacerbated cases of malnutrition and multiple diseases.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu once again submitted a request to the Jerusalem District Court today, Sunday, to postpone his testimony before it in the corruption cases in which he is accused for 15 days, on the pretext that the International Criminal Court in The Hague has issued arrest warrants against him and against former Defense Minister Yoav Galant.

The request to postpone Netanyahu's testimony, submitted by his lawyers, stated that the defense attorneys would not be ready to begin hearing Netanyahu's testimony scheduled for early next month, and that the attorneys met with Netanyahu in preparation for his testimony "daily and late at night."

The lawyers added that the reason for the postponement was "the fact that last Thursday the court in The Hague announced the issuance of arrest warrants against the prime minister and the former security minister. Naturally, this ironic and sad event caused the cancellation of several preparatory meetings."

The lawyers added that they are requesting that Netanyahu's testimony be postponed to December 17, instead of the second of the same month, according to the court's decision.

Two weeks ago, the Jerusalem District Court rejected Netanyahu's request to postpone the start of his testimony in court until next February, meaning that the testimony will begin on December 2.

The three judges said they were not convinced that there had been "a material change in circumstances" that would affect the postponement of his testimony, because in deciding to start the testimony on December 2, "all the relevant considerations, including the war situation, were taken into account."

Netanyahu's lawyer claimed that "there were weeks during which we were unable to meet with the prime minister" because of the war, and that "Netanyahu put the needs of the state before his personal needs."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent a message to the residents of Gaza, calling for action to free the detainees in the Strip, while threatening a "grim fate."

"I appeal to the residents of Gaza. You can choose life and ensuring your future and the future of your families, or you can cling to destruction and death. The decision is yours. Choose life," Netanyahu said at the weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday.

Netanyahu was speaking, according to the Times of Israel, about the fate of dozens of detainees held by Hamas inside the Gaza Strip.

"We are committed to doing everything we can to bring back all the hostages. We are trying to exhaust every opportunity and every crack. I will not go into detail about it," he said.

Netanyahu reiterated his offer of $5 million to anyone who frees a captive alive.

He also said that Tel Aviv was checking a Hamas video on Saturday showing the body of a detainee the movement said it killed in an Israeli airstrike in the northern Gaza Strip. Netanyahu said he had spoken to the detainee's mother.

It is believed that there are about 100 "Israeli" detainees in the Gaza Strip now, only about half of whom are alive, according to the occupation's estimates.

The French Council of the Muslim Faith said that the two international arrest warrants issued against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Galant represent a "ray of hope" regarding the implementation of international law.

The council added in a statement on Sunday that "the world has been witnessing, helplessly, for more than a year the systematic destruction of the civilian population in Gaza."

He pointed out that Israeli ministers and officials made statements "explicitly expressing genocidal intentions" towards Gaza.

He stressed that the International Criminal Court's issuance of arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Galant on charges of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity represents a "ray of hope" for the enforcement of international law.

The statement said that this decision is a "fragile promise of justice and peace in the darkness imposed on Gaza."

The council criticised French media and politics for continuing to "defend Netanyahu at all costs" despite the ICC warrants.

The statement considered the French media's defense of Netanyahu in this context as "a sacrifice of what remains of the crumbs of international law."

On Friday, the French Foreign Ministry said the warrant issued by the International Criminal Court "is not a verdict, but a formalization of the indictment."

On Thursday, the International Criminal Court issued two international arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Galant, on charges of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity during the ongoing genocide committed by Israel against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023.

During a press conference on the day the international warrant was issued, French Foreign Ministry spokesman Christophe Lemoyne avoided providing a clear answer as to whether his country would implement the International Criminal Court's order to arrest Netanyahu.

Today, Sunday, the Israeli occupation forces attacked students of Al-Khader schools, south of Bethlehem.

Local sources reported that the occupation forces attacked the students of Al-Khader schools in the "Tall" area in the Old City, after they left their schools, by firing sound bombs, without any injuries being reported, which created a state of panic and fear among them.

It is noteworthy that the students of Al-Khader schools have been subjected to repeated attacks by the occupation forces for some time, with the firing of bullets, toxic gas and sound bombs, and their pursuit through the neighborhoods.

The Ministry of Health in Gaza reported today, Sunday, that the Israeli occupation committed 4 massacres against families in the Gaza Strip, resulting in 35 dead and 94 injuries arriving at hospitals during the past 24 hours.

The ministry confirmed in a brief statement that the death toll from the Israeli aggression has risen to 44,211 dead and 104,567 injuries since October 7, 2023.

She pointed out that there are a number of victims still under the rubble and on the roads, and ambulance and civil defense crews cannot reach them.

Dozens of settlers stormed the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem today, Sunday, under the protection of the Israeli occupation police.

Eyewitnesses reported that 144 settlers stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque in groups, carried out provocative tours in its courtyards, and performed Talmudic rituals, under the protection of the occupation forces.

Hundreds of demonstrators in the Dutch capital Amsterdam on Saturday demanded the immediate implementation of the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense minister, Yoav Galant.

Demonstrators gathered in Dam Square to express their anger at Israel's continued genocide in Gaza, expressing their discontent with Western countries, primarily the Netherlands, the United States, Britain and Germany, for their support of Israel despite its violations in Gaza.

The demonstrators set off from Dam Square towards the city's central train station in a march that lasted about two hours.

During the march, the demonstrators chanted slogans such as "Free Palestine," "Free Lebanon," and "Stop the genocide."

In a speech at the demonstration, the head of the European Youth League, Murat Gok, demanded that the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court against Netanyahu and Galant be entered into immediately.

Another spokesman said that the health system in Gaza had completely collapsed, and that the wounded were now waiting to die from pain without treatment.

On Thursday, the International Criminal Court issued two international arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Galant, on charges of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity during the ongoing genocide committed by Israel against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023.

With American support, Israel has been committing genocide in Gaza since October 7, 2023, leaving more than 148,000 Palestinians dead and wounded, most of them children and women, and more than 10,000 missing, amid massive destruction and famine that killed dozens of children and the elderly, in one of the worst humanitarian disasters in the world.

Israel continues its massacres, ignoring the UN Security Council resolution to end them immediately, and the International Court of Justice’s orders to take measures to prevent acts of genocide and improve the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza.

The Israeli occupation authorities notified, on Sunday afternoon, the demolition of homes in the town of Silwan, south of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque in the occupied city of Jerusalem.

The Wadi Hilweh Information Center reported that the occupation municipality crews in Jerusalem posted demolition orders in the Al-Bustan neighborhood for homes belonging to the Abu Shafe’ family, and gave them a period of 14 days to evacuate them.

The same sources added that the occupation municipality crews stormed Al-Bustan neighborhood since morning, distributed demolition notices, and photographed facilities and roads in the neighborhood.

A short while ago, the occupation municipality crews, with military reinforcements, stormed the Ein Al-Lawza neighborhood in the town of Silwan, and posted inspection orders on several homes.

Israel on Sunday called on its citizens to "avoid non-essential travel" to the UAE, after the body of Rabbi Zvi Kogan, who had been missing since last Thursday, was found.

This came in a statement by the Israeli National Security Council, published by the private Hebrew Channel (12).

The statement read: "Following reports of the killing of Zvi Kogan in the United Arab Emirates as a result of a terrorist act, the National Security Council has tightened its recommendation to avoid non-essential travel to the country."

He added: "The National Security Council asks (Israelis in the Emirates) to exercise increased vigilance in public places, avoid displaying Israeli symbols, and avoid posting details of the trip on social media."

Earlier on Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office and the Israeli Foreign Ministry said in a joint statement that "the intelligence and security authorities in the UAE have found the body of Kogan, who has been missing since Thursday, November 21, 2024."

He added: "The Israeli Embassy in Abu Dhabi has been in contact with the family since the beginning of the incident and continues to accompany them during their difficult time."

He continued, "The murder of Zvi Kogan is a criminal, anti-Semitic terrorist incident, and Israel will act by all means and bring to justice the criminals responsible for his murder."

There was no immediate comment from the UAE authorities on this matter until (08:30 GMT).

On Saturday, Netanyahu's office and the Mossad intelligence agency said in a joint statement that Rabbi Zvi Kogan, an Israeli citizen of Moldovan origin who lives in the UAE, "disappeared under mysterious circumstances since Thursday afternoon."

The UAE authorities also announced on Saturday that they are searching for a Moldovan citizen who is missing in the country.

Majid Al Mansouri, Director of the Foreign Nationals Department at the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said in a statement that "the ministry is closely following the case of the disappearance of a Moldovan citizen named Yezvi Kogan."

Al Mansouri added that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs "is in contact with Kogan's family and is providing them with all necessary support," and that the ministry "is in continuous contact with the Moldovan Embassy in Abu Dhabi in this regard."

He explained that "the competent authorities in the country began search and investigation operations immediately after receiving the report."

According to the Hebrew newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, Kogan was officially residing in the UAE as an assistant to the Chief Rabbi of Abu Dhabi.

Chabad is an extremist organization that does not believe in the existence of Palestinians and calls for their expulsion from occupied Palestine. It opposes any agreement that would give them part of the land.

The organization's members are present in several countries, including the United States, France, and Canada, in addition to the Emirates, where they established the Jewish community center, which contains a synagogue and Torah scrolls. The center is headed by Rabbi Levi Duchman.

Today, Sunday, Israeli forces bombed the outskirts of the village of Mari in southern Lebanon with phosphorous shells near a checkpoint of the country's army, coinciding with the implementation of raids on the city of Khiyam, which the Israeli occupation army continues to try to control.

The official Lebanese News Agency reported that the Israeli raids targeted the villages of Kfar Shouba, Al-Khiam in Nabatieh, the Al-Rahebat neighborhood, between Al-Numayriyeh and Al-Sharqiya, Mayfadoun, Shukin, Harouf, Al-Jabal Al-Ahmar, and others.

According to the same source, "the Israeli occupation forces bombed the outskirts of Al-Mari at night, near the army checkpoint, with phosphorous shells, in conjunction with carrying out raids on the city of Khiam, booby-trapping houses and blowing them up."

The Israeli air force raided the Khardali road (between Nabatieh and Marjeyoun), cutting it off.

Israeli movements continue in Deir Mimas (Marjeyoun), and soldiers are deployed with tanks among the olive groves and near the monastery west of Deir Mimas, according to the agency.

The agency added: "The Israeli air force launched two raids on the city of Khiyam, and its operations included blowing up houses in Shama and Tayr Harfa, while fierce clashes are taking place between the resistance (Hezbollah) and the occupation forces around the Khiyam municipality.

Israel considers Khiyam a "strategic gateway that enables it to quickly penetrate" Lebanese territory, according to the agency.

Clashes erupted between Hezbollah fighters and Israeli army forces at the "Maroun al-Ras-Ainata-Bint Jbeil" triangle, while the party targeted Israeli army positions at the outskirts of Shama and al-Bayada, amid ongoing clashes, according to the news agency.

In Tyre, in the southern governorate, the agency reported that the Israeli army's aircraft "carried out a belt of fire on Sunday morning by launching more than one raid on the towns of Shaqra and Barashit, destroying a number of buildings and residential apartments, without details about casualties or injuries."

Israel officially announced, on Sunday, that the body of Rabbi Zvi Kogan, who has been missing since Thursday in the United Arab Emirates, has been found.

"The UAE intelligence and security authorities have found the body of Zvi Kogan, who has been missing since Thursday," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office and the Israeli Foreign Ministry said in a joint statement.

The statement described Kogan's killing as "a heinous anti-Semitic terrorist act," noting that Israel will do its utmost "until justice is served."

Zvi Kogan, a representative of the Jewish Chabad movement in the Emirates, holds Moldovan citizenship in addition to Israeli citizenship.

There was no immediate comment from the UAE authorities on the Israeli announcement of the rabbi's killing.

The Israeli army called in a statement, today, Sunday, on the residents of 5 towns in southern Lebanon to evacuate them in preparation for bombing them, warning the residents against heading south.

The five towns are: East Zawtar, West Zawtar, Arnoun, Yahmor, and Al-Qasiba.

The Israeli army said: "You must evacuate your homes immediately and move to the north of the Awali River. To ensure your safety, you must evacuate without delay. Anyone who is near Hezbollah elements, installations or weapons is putting his life in danger."

The Israeli army also said in a separate statement that sirens sounded in central Israel due to rockets fired from Lebanon.

The army added that it had detected 6 missiles crossing from Lebanon into Israeli territory, and said that its air forces intercepted 5 of them, and the last one fell in an open area.

Israel has increased the rate of killing Palestinians in various areas of the Gaza Strip, in response to the International Criminal Court’s decisions to issue arrest warrants against war criminals Netanyahu and Galant.

The statement issued by Netanyahu's office in response to the decision that he will continue his war and there is no force to stop him seems to be in harmony with the increase in the unjustified killing of civilians, but Israel has a means to continue its war, according to its claims, against what it describes as "Palestinian terrorism." This description contains a very dangerous equation. Israel, which kills and destroys everything in Gaza, is interested at this stage in continuing its massacres and war of extermination, because the United States, which has rejected international resolutions, and is the greatest devil of humanity that directs Israel, provides it with cover and supports it, is interested in continuing the war at the same pace, if not more, because any halt or reduction in operations will raise question marks in international public opinion. Therefore, Israel has decided to continue its aggression based on the slogans it raises, the most prominent of which is that it is waging the most just war in the world against terrorism, and this slogan alone is enough to make it continue killing and slaughtering civilians in the Gaza Strip.

The rate of killing has increased everywhere in the Strip. In one day, more than 120 people were killed and about 300 others were injured, in an indication of clear Israeli intentions to turn the Strip into a sea of blood even bigger than it is now.

Yesterday's toll was seven massacres, raising the total number of martyrs to more than 44,180. This toll is likely to rise dramatically in the coming days if Israel is not stopped and stopped from this most ferocious war in human history, in which women and children are killed in tents and shelters, and even those heading for a drink of water or a piece of bread, are cut off by planes and drones and their bodies are turned into pieces. This is what happened in Zeitoun, Nuseirat, Bureij, Khan Yunis and Rafah, in addition to the massacres in northern Gaza.

The mere rejection by the United States and the White House leadership in its current guise, or the one that will be renewed on January 20 with the inauguration of Trump as president, of the International Criminal Court’s decision, considering that what Israel is doing in the Gaza Strip of massacres against humanity are war crimes, means a new green light for the occupying entity to continue its crimes, and this rejection alone is enough to encourage Israel to tighten its grip on the Strip, and move to carry out more massacres of genocide, at the hands of an army that is the most dangerous to humanity through its racism and its orientation towards a war of revenge in response to October 7, 2023.

Before the ICC decision, the United Nations and Human Rights Watch issued two separate reports last week accusing Israel of having practices during the Gaza war that were consistent with the characteristics of genocide and amounted to a war crime. The Israeli military accused Human Rights Watch of “bias against Israel and distorting the facts,” and said in a statement: “This report, like other reports before it, presents selective information in a way that obscures the context, in addition to making some blatant distortions.” For its part, the United States considered that there was “no basis” for a special UN committee to consider that Israel’s practices during the Gaza war were “consistent with the characteristics of genocide.”

“This is something we disagree with unequivocally,” the State Department spokesman said, adding, “We believe that such formulations and such accusations are absolutely without merit,” and denouncing the Human Rights Watch report.

These statements and positions provide a clear answer to the question: Why does Israel continue its war of extermination? But the more important questions are: Can it be forced to implement the procedures of the Security Council resolutions and international courts? How can Israel be held accountable? And will the Arab and Western countries take the necessary measures to ensure the implementation of the will of the international community?

Answer: No, and the result is that the killing of Palestinians will continue indefinitely.

The practices of the Israeli occupation against Palestinian children are escalating, and the extremist occupation government is committing all forms of genocide, starvation, and deliberate killing within the ethnic cleansing war waged by the occupying state. It has become necessary to work to provide urgent and immediate protection for Palestinian children, in light of the systematic targeting of them by the occupation, coinciding with the International Children's Day, which falls on the twentieth of November of each year.

The international community must not exclude Palestinian children from international protection, as they suffer from many calamities, especially with the escalation of inhumane and disastrous practices and the violation of their most basic rights, most importantly the right to life. The latest statistics on the number of child martyrs reflect the hideousness of the ongoing genocidal war that targets innocent people without discrimination, especially children who pay the highest price.

Children in Gaza are facing a real threat, with hundreds of thousands estimated to be suffering from severe shortages of food and clean drinking water. Palestinian children in the West Bank are subjected to arrest and military trials that violate their basic rights, with 85% of them handcuffed and blindfolded, and many arrested at night, in flagrant violation of all international norms and agreements, including the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which guarantees special protection for children from arrest and violence. Some 70 Palestinians, including children, are under house arrest as a result of the increased restrictions since October 2023.

The racist law passed by the Israeli Knesset in November 2024, which allows the detention of Palestinian children under the age of 14 if they are convicted of “terrorist” crimes, as they call them, or similar activities, including murder, constitutes a serious escalation against their rights and increases their suffering, in addition to the disastrous consequences of banning UNRWA activities on the services provided to children, whether health, education or living.

The international community must take urgent action to ensure that the occupying state respects all international covenants and treaties, most notably the Convention on the Rights of the Child, as children in the Gaza Strip are the ones paying the heavy price for the ongoing occupation aggression since October 7, 2023, in full view of the world, which is still unable to stop this genocide. The bodies of children in the Gaza Strip have been exposed to various weapons, including missiles and bombs, and the most hideous forms of killing and destruction, in addition to the dozens who have been killed by hunger, thirst and disease as a result of the siege, and thousands of them have become orphans.

Palestinian childhood is still being robbed in light of the continued brutal aggression of the occupation against the Palestinian people and the violation of the rights of Palestinian children, in a clear challenge to the International Convention on the Rights of the Child, and all the special rights it includes that are binding on all countries and governments. These numbers are not just statistics, but rather reflect human suffering that requires action from the international community to save children, guarantee their basic rights, and assume its legal and moral responsibilities towards these crimes.

International organizations and countries of the world must move to ensure relief for children and their families, prevent famine, facilitate the evacuation of the injured and sick for treatment in hospitals outside the Strip, provide health and humanitarian services, and the importance of working hard to end this genocide and save human life that is at risk of extinction, end the longest occupation on earth, build a just and secure future for the children of Palestine, and hold the leaders of the occupation and its soldiers accountable for the crimes and massacres committed against them before the international judiciary.

I am writing today’s article to introduce the reader to the details of Palestine’s journey to join the International Criminal Court, leading up to the arrest warrants. Today’s article documents and explains the diplomatic efforts and legal steps that Palestine took to reach this historic moment. I will put the steps in their time frame so that the reader can understand the challenges and patience required for the diplomatic work that we are reaping the fruits of today.

* 1998 Adoption of the Rome Statute: The Rome Statute was signed, regulating the work of the International Criminal Court, and aims to hold individuals accountable for crimes of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity.

* 2002 Establishment of the International Criminal Court: The court was officially established and began its work to hold accountable individuals accused of committing the major crimes covered by the statute.

* 2011 Palestine's status at the UN is upgraded: Palestine began efforts to upgrade its status at the UN as a first step towards joining the ICC. The PLO requested that its status at the UN be upgraded from "observer entity" to "non-member observer state."

This was part of a diplomatic strategy aimed at strengthening its international standing, allowing it to accede to international treaties and agreements, including the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. This was the cornerstone of a long and arduous legal diplomatic process. Unfortunately, the PLO failed to obtain the votes required in the Security Council to raise the status of a full member state, so it turned to the General Assembly under the item of Uniting for Peace.

* 2012 Palestine was granted non-member observer state status at the United Nations: This General Assembly resolution allowed Palestine to join several international conventions and treaties, including the possibility of joining the International Criminal Court. 138 voted in favor and Palestine was granted non-member observer state status at the United Nations through General Assembly resolution 67/19.

* June 2014 - The Government of the State of Palestine, by a declaration made pursuant to Article 12(3) of the Rome Statute, accepted the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court, effective 13 June 2014.

* January 2015, Submission of the Application to Join the Rome Statute: Palestine submitted its official application to join the International Criminal Court. The PLO, led by Dr. Saeb Erekat, formed the Supreme National Committee to follow up on the file of international courts, and confirmed its commitment to the Rome Statute. On January 1, 2015, the PLO officially submitted the accession documents.

* April 1, 2015 Palestine officially joined the court: The Rome Statute entered into force for the State of Palestine, and Palestine became an official member of the court. This day was considered a historic milestone in the Palestinian struggle to achieve justice. The Palestinians then submitted a request to the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to investigate violations of the Rome Statute in the Palestinian territories occupied by Israel in 1967 regarding war crimes and crimes against humanity, most notably the prisoners and settlement files. The High Committee was working to intensify referrals and follow-up, which angered Israel and America.

* 2019-2020 Request to confirm the Court’s jurisdiction: After receiving objections from several countries, including the United States and Israel, Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda asked the Pre-Trial Chamber for its opinion on the Court’s jurisdiction over the Palestinian territories after Israel questioned this jurisdiction.

* February 5, 2021 Confirmation of the Court’s Jurisdiction: The International Criminal Court issued a decision confirming its jurisdiction over the Palestinian territories occupied in 1967, including the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip.

* October 2023 Palestinian diplomacy and the multilateral sector activated the international legal file to try to stop the ceasefire in Gaza.

* 17 November 2023 Referrals were submitted by the Republic of South Africa, the Republic of Bangladesh, the Plurinational State of Bolivia, the Union of the Comoros, and the Republic of Djibouti regarding the crime of genocide in Gaza.

* January 18, 2024 Additional referrals made by the Republic of Chile and the United Mexican States.

* May 2024 - Prosecutor’s announcement on arrest warrants: Karim Khan, the Court’s prosecutor, announced his intention to issue arrest warrants against political and military figures from Israel and the Gaza Strip, including Benjamin Netanyahu, Yoav Galant, Ismail Haniyeh, Yahya Sinwar and Mohammed Deif.

* On 26 September 2024, Israel challenged the jurisdiction of the Court over the situation in the State of Palestine in general, and specifically in relation to Israeli nationals, on the basis of Article 19(2) of the Statute. In its second request, Israel requested the Chamber to order the Prosecution to submit a new notification to its authorities regarding the commencement of an investigation pursuant to Article 18(1) of the Statute. Israel also requested the Chamber to stay any proceedings before the Court relating to the situation, including the consideration of the applications for arrest warrants against Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Galant, submitted by the Prosecution on 20 May 2024.

* November 21, 2024 - Arrest warrants issued: The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Galant, six months after Karim Khan's announcement.

In parallel with the arrest warrants, 2024 November - The Court issued two decisions dismissing the challenges brought by Israel under Articles 18 and 19 of the Rome Statute, confirming the validity of the Court’s decisions. With regard to the first challenge, the Chamber noted that Israel’s acceptance of the Court’s jurisdiction was not required, as the Court could exercise its jurisdiction based on the territorial jurisdiction of the State of Palestine, as determined by Pre-Trial Chamber I in its previous configuration.

Furthermore, the Chamber considered that, pursuant to Article 19(1) of the Statute, States are not entitled to challenge the Court’s jurisdiction under Article 19(2) before an arrest warrant is issued. Israel’s challenge is therefore premature.

However, this decision does not affect any potential future challenges to the jurisdiction and/or admissibility of any particular case. The Chamber also rejected Israel’s request under Article 18(1) of the Statute. It explained that the Prosecution notified Israel of the commencement of the investigation in 2021. At that time, and despite a request for clarification from the Prosecution, Israel chose not to pursue any request to postpone the investigation. The Chamber also considered that the parameters of the investigation into the situation remained the same and that there was therefore no need for a new notification to the State of Israel. Accordingly, the judges concluded that there was no reason to discontinue the consideration of the requests for the issuance of arrest warrants issued against Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Galant, for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed at least between 8 October 2023 and 20 May 2024, the day on which the Prosecution submitted the requests for the issuance of arrest warrants.

The arrest warrants were classified as “secret” to protect witnesses and ensure the proper conduct of investigations. However, the Department has decided to release the information related to them, as it appears that conduct similar to that described in the arrest warrant is still ongoing. In addition, the Department considers that it is in the best interests of the victims and their families to be aware of the existence of these warrants.

So now, there are 124 member states of the Rome Statute that are obligated to implement the court’s decisions, while 7 countries, including South Africa, Bolivia, Djibouti, Bangladesh, Comoros, Chile and Mexico, have returned their referrals regarding the crime of genocide, which is a historic achievement for humanity and international justice. These developments represent an important turning point in international law and the fact that Israel has repeatedly escaped punishment under the cover of international legitimacy. The arrest warrants have strengthened the court’s role in restoring confidence in the international system and law to hold war criminals accountable, despite attempts by Israel and the United States to obstruct the court’s work. Member states that have declared their defiance of the arrest warrants will be held accountable, and it is not unlikely that human rights organizations and individuals will file lawsuits against them and find their persons under indictment in their local courts and the International Criminal Court, as international law is superior to local law and the signatory states to the Statute are obligated to implement and harmonize domestic laws.

The International Criminal Court was established in 2002 with the aim of holding individuals accountable for committing crimes against humanity and war crimes, including genocide. The Statute of the International Criminal Court was adopted in Rome in 1998. Palestine’s accession to the court was not a simple matter; it was a diplomatic process that required a lot of patience, deliberation, teamwork, and strategic leadership. It was not an automatic accession, but rather began with a request to the United Nations to raise Palestine’s status in 2012 to a non-member state, which allowed it to join a group of international agreements and conventions. Here, the Palestinian application to join the Rome Statute of the court was submitted in 2014-2015.

Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda accepted the mandate and intended to open an investigation into the referral of Israeli criminals under the war crimes clause, but Israel quickly objected on the grounds that Palestine is not a sovereign state, i.e. it questioned the territorial jurisdiction of the court. Therefore, the Prosecutor asked the Pre-Trial Chamber for its opinion on territorial jurisdiction to confirm Bensouda’s position that the court’s position on having legal jurisdiction over the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip would enable her to open the investigation. The response was expected to come within a period not exceeding 120 days since the end of 2019, and we were hoping that the court would begin investigating the files of Israeli criminals in early 2020, but we witnessed successive extensions by the court, which is further evidence that the process is complex and requires a lot of patience, diligence and work. The Pre-Trial Chamber invited Israel to submit observations on January 28, 2020, but the latter chose not to respond directly legally, but rather continued to question and direct political accusations at the court and the Prosecutor. On 2/5/2021, the Pre-Trial Chamber of the International Criminal Court issued a decision regarding the court’s jurisdiction to consider war crimes committed, confirming its jurisdiction over the Palestinian territories occupied in 1967, including the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip. This decision means that the subject of the court’s territorial jurisdiction over Palestine is beyond doubt, and it has become an official and legal headquarters.

The court was expected to practically begin accelerating its judicial procedures to investigate the files brought before it, including the crimes committed by Israel during the occupation’s three-time aggression on the Gaza Strip, and the files of prisoners and settlements since 2014, i.e. since Palestine joined the Charter, and not retroactively according to the law. Under the Rome Statute, the International Criminal Court only prosecutes cases in which national authorities clearly fail to ensure accountability. In this context, any examination of the Israeli judicial system regarding violations of Palestinian rights falls under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court. In 2015, the Palestinians submitted a request to the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to investigate violations of the Rome Statute in the Palestinian territories occupied by Israel in 1967, beginning in 2014. The court wasted years adjudicating jurisdictional issues before finally confirming, in 2021, that it had the mandate to conduct legal investigations in the occupied territories. When Israel failed to prevent the Palestinians’ accession, it began to practice coercive “diplomacy” through economic sanctions and withholding Palestinian tax revenues that it was legally required to transfer to the Palestinian Authority, and imposed a variety of restrictions on Palestinian officials, and threatened to punish the Palestinian Authority in additional ways, while the United States made its displeasure clear, and directed its retaliatory measures directly at the International Criminal Court, and Washington imposed sanctions on Fatou Bensouda, Karim Khan’s predecessor.

This is how Washington has informed the ICC that it has no right to investigate Israel’s crimes against the Palestinians or the US’s conduct in Afghanistan. Now, smear campaigns and sexual suspicions against Karim Khan are being launched, all in an attempt to pressure and intimidate the court. In 2002, the US adopted legislation known as the Hague Invasion Act, which allows the US military to invade the Netherlands, a NATO member, and release any US citizen held by the ICC. Meanwhile, the Europeans, who are members of the Rome Statute, have continued to affirm their support for the ICC while presenting the court with false legal arguments insisting that it has no jurisdiction over Palestine.

It is necessary to reactivate the Supreme National Committee for the Follow-up of the International Courts File, which includes representatives of all factions, including Hamas, and representatives of Palestinian human rights and official institutions. The objectives of the National Committee were to follow up on the necessary preparations for submitting files related to Israeli war crimes, especially the settlement and Gaza files, and to work on formulating the legal evidence and documents required to submit them to the International Criminal Court, in addition to coordinating with Palestinian and international bodies to collect documents proving Israeli violations and ensuring Palestine’s compliance with the requirements of the Rome Statute. This comprehensive national committee was part of the Palestinian national strategy to promote recourse to international law as a means of achieving justice and holding the occupation accountable for crimes committed in the Palestinian territories on the basis of national unity.

Israel is currently committing a brutal genocide in the Gaza Strip, prompting many jurists to file cases against Israel before the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice. These cases, particularly the South Africa v. Israel case, where Germany filed a request for intervention and South Africa subsequently accused the United States and the United Kingdom of complicity in the crime of genocide, constitute a pivotal stage of the point of no return in international law. The charges and referrals regarding the crime of genocide are important, but it is necessary to reactivate and intensify referrals for all crimes against humanity, including the files of settlements, prisoners and the repeated aggression on Gaza.

The arrest warrants reaffirm the importance of diplomatic and legal tools and the need to build on them and invest in them. Diplomacy is a long journey that requires effort, time and money, but this path has branded Israel with a new brand that is an organized terrorist state and has proven the criminality of its leadership as a historical precedent.