It is not enough to be “technically” truthful, when the full truth of the matter is often right in front of us. Choosing to say that people like Hamad, al-Hathalin, and Asaad were not is an injustice to their memory, and to all the other Palestinian victims who have “died” as a result of Israel’s occupation.
The Israeli army concluded its investigation last week into the death of Omar Asaad, an 80-year-old dual Palestinian-American citizen who was killed during a violent Israeli raid on his hometown in the occupied West Bank in January. The internal army investigation, which came after mounting pressure from US officials, concluded that Asaad’s death was a “grave and unfortunate event, resulting from a moral failure and poor decision-making on the part of the soldiers.” The US State Department, however, said they were not satisfied with the findings of the army’s investigation, nor with the disciplinary actions taken against some of the soldiers, and that they expect Israeli officials to carry out a “comprehensive criminal investigation.”
2021 was a watershed year for Palestinians. The struggle for Palestinian freedom and liberation saw unprecedented levels of global solidarity and unity amongst Palestinians despite their forced fragmentation. The year did not come without its challenges, however.
Several Palestinians were injured and 63-year-old Ghadeer Fuqaha Masalmeh was killed on Friday, as a wave of Israeli settler attacks on Palestinians and their homes has swept across the occupied West Bank. Masalmeh is the third Palestinian to be killed in the West Bank over the past week. 2021 has seen a staggering rise in settler violence, with UN OCHA reporting at least 450 settler attacks against Palestinians and their property as of December 6th.
Three Palestinian young people share the tremendous challenges they face due to the Israeli occupation.
Caging Childhood: Palestinian Children in Israel’s Military Detention System is a short documentary that tells the story of three Palestinian children who were detained by the Israeli military in the West Bank.
On Sunday Israel approved plans for 1,300 new settlement units in the occupied West Bank, in the first move of its kind since US President Joe Biden took office. Later this week, the Israel Higher Planning Committee is expected to meet to push forward plans for an additional 2,862 units.
In a new report, Israeli human rights group B’Tselem detailed the harrowing tale of a Palestinian teenager who was kidnapped and tortured by a group of Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank this summer. The youth was burned, beaten, and handed over to Israeli soldiers unconscious.
Health officials have now mandated vaccines for government employees and students, and are offering up to $200 in prize money to encourage taking the jab among skeptics.
Israeli forces shot and killed 15-year-old Imad Khaled Saleh Hashash during a raid Tuesday morning in the Balata refugee camp. Hashash was watching the raid from the roof of his house when he was shot in the head.