European-Palestinian Media Center (EPAL) Bulletin | Issue: 2592 | Date: Tuesday, 20/10/2026

1. Five killed, including two children, in Israeli strikes on Gaza City and Khan Yunis

Five Palestinian citizens were killed and others were injured, including children, as a result of airstrikes and gunfire by Israeli occupation forces in various parts of the Gaza Strip, amid continued violations of the ceasefire.

### 2. Prisoners’ Media Office: Female detainees have their hijabs removed, are beaten, and 17 are placed in isolation

The Prisoners’ Media Office has revealed assaults committed by Israeli officers and prison guards against Palestinian female detainees. The reported abuses included removing their hijabs, beating them, and spraying gas inside their cells and shower areas. These incidents caused the health conditions of several detainees to deteriorate, including that of a pregnant prisoner.

The office stated that an Israeli officer uncovered the heads of female detainees to inspect their hair, isolated 17 women, and forced them to undo their braids. The office described these actions as an assault on their privacy and dignity.

### 3. Half a million Gazans lose aid as declining funding deepens the effects of the blockade

The food available to residents of the Gaza Strip is dwindling as winter approaches, after the World Food Programme announced that it would reduce the number of people receiving monthly assistance by approximately half a million because of funding shortages.

Meanwhile, around two-thirds of the population continue to suffer from acute food insecurity.

The decision threatens to deprive hundreds of thousands of Palestinians of essential support for survival, while Israeli restrictions continue to obstruct the Strip’s recovery and its ability to meet the population’s needs.

### 4. Settler attacks escalate in the West Bank: Two injured and olive harvests stolen

Israeli settlers have intensified attacks against Palestinian civilians and their property in various parts of the occupied West Bank. The incidents resulted in two people being injured and included attacks on homes and farmers, the theft of olive harvests and harvesting equipment, and the disconnection of electricity to one home.

Two Palestinian citizens sustained wounds and bruises following a settler attack on the Bedouin community of al-Kaabneh, near the village of al-Taybeh, east of Ramallah.

Settlers also attacked an ambulance belonging to the Silwad Municipality as it was heading to the area to assist the two injured people.

### 5. World Food Programme cuts aid to half a million Palestinians in Gaza due to funding shortages

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) announced that it would reduce the number of recipients of food assistance in the Gaza Strip by approximately 500,000, bringing the total down from 1.6 million to 1.1 million.

The decision comes amid funding shortages, as winter approaches and large numbers of Palestinians continue to depend on aid to meet their basic needs.

The programme’s acting Executive Director, Carl Skau, said the reduction in assistance was caused by exhausted funding, not by a decline in humanitarian needs. He warned of the consequences for Palestinian families already facing extremely harsh living conditions.

### 6. Video: Israeli occupation forces launch an arrest campaign in Hebron

Watch: Blindfolded and handcuffed, several Palestinians are arrested by the Israeli army following a large-scale raid campaign in al-Fawwar refugee camp, south of Hebron, in the occupied West Bank.

### 7. Video: Israeli settlers burn Palestinian property

Watch: Israeli settlers set fire to a mobile home, a shed, and heavy machinery south of Hebron in the occupied West Bank.

Muhammad Harizat, the owner of the burned equipment, said settler attacks had been continuing for months and included the burning and destruction of property.

He explained that settlers had set fire to caravans containing supplies used to provide services to the area, as well as the home of one of his neighbours. They also spray-painted slogans in Hebrew on the targeted properties.

### 8. Human rights centre calls on the World Food Programme to reverse its decision to suspend aid to half a million Palestinians in Gaza

The Protection Centre for Human Rights has called on the World Food Programme to reverse its decision to suspend food assistance to approximately half a million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and to guarantee that aid continues without interruption.

The centre warned of the consequences of the decision for the already deteriorating humanitarian situation in the Strip.

It condemned the programme’s announcement that food assistance would be suspended on the grounds of funding shortages. The centre stressed that depriving approximately half a million Palestinians of adequate assistance amid the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza threatens to worsen hunger and malnutrition.

It also warned that the decision endangers the lives of the most vulnerable groups, particularly children, women, older people, patients, and displaced people.

### 9. New settlement expansion: Israel issues tenders for 1,080 housing units in and around Jerusalem

The Commission Against the Separation Wall and Settlements revealed that, during October, Israeli occupation authorities had issued two settlement construction tenders for 1,080 housing units in occupied East Jerusalem and its eastern surroundings.

According to the commission, the initiative aims to expand settlements and strengthen the settler presence at the expense of Palestinian land.

The two tenders cover:

– The construction of 730 settlement housing units in the Pisgat Ze’ev settlement, north of occupied Jerusalem.
– The construction of 350 units intended for older people in the Ma’ale Adumim settlement, east of the city.

# European News

### 10. Britain urges companies not to participate in the E1 settlement project in the West Bank

British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband has urged companies and individuals not to participate in the E1 settlement project in the West Bank.

Miliband warned that those involved in constructing settlements considered illegal could face sanctions.

### 11. Investigation confirms largely peaceful nature of Sydney protests against Herzog’s visit and challenges police claims

The Australian Law Enforcement Conduct Commission announced that its ongoing investigation into the crackdown on demonstrations opposing Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s visit to Sydney had found that the protests were “largely peaceful.”

The commission confirmed that there was little evidence of protesters engaging in physical violence.

The oversight body’s announcement challenges the official account given by the police of the state of New South Wales and the local government, which, according to the report, had sought to discredit the solidarity movement and justify the excessive use of force by claiming that officers had been assaulted.

### 12. Solidarity activists enter the British Museum in protest against the financing of settlements

Activists entered the British Museum in London during the second annual fundraising dinner held to mark the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States.

The protest denounced what participants described as complicity in the genocide in the Gaza Strip and the ongoing aggression against the peoples of the region.

The protesters targeted Igor Tulchinsky, the event’s honorary chair, exposing what they described as his direct investments in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank that are subject to British sanctions.

### 13. British Green Party leader: The practical implementation of Zionism has come at the expense of the Palestinian people

Zack Polanski, leader of the British Green Party, has reiterated his defence of the party’s political positions, which classify Zionism as a racist movement and a colonial ideology supporting the creation of an “ethnic nation-state for Jews.”

Polanski pledged to maintain this policy in full and ensure that it remains officially in place until at least 2028.

He also stated that the colonial system associated with the occupation is openly committing genocide in the Gaza Strip. His remarks are consistent with the party’s political position in support of boycotting the occupation.

Polanski directly accused the British government of involvement in and full partnership with war crimes through its continued granting of military export licences.

### 14. Guardiola defends the rights of Gaza’s children

Spanish football manager Pep Guardiola condemned the use of terms such as “collateral damage” to describe victims of the war in Gaza, arguing that such language obscures the reality of the people being targeted and strips them of their humanity.

He called for killings to be described for what they are and urged people to remember that the victims are children and individuals with names, families, and dreams.

### 15. Solidarity campaign seeks to restrict Airbnb’s activities in Sydney

The Sydney Municipal Group for Palestine, in cooperation with housing organisations, plans to submit a motion next month seeking to restrict Airbnb’s activities in the city.

Groups supporting the Palestinian cause have called on people to sign a petition backing the initiative and to participate in a protest outside Sydney Town Hall on the evening the motion is discussed.

### 16. Police clash with protesters outside the British Museum during demonstration over its patron’s connections

Police suppressed protesters in London during a demonstration held alongside a fundraising event inside the British Museum.

The protest was directed against the honorary patron’s alleged connections to the financing of settlements and his children’s service in the Israeli military.

### 17. More than 1,000 days: Belfast activists continue removing products linked to the occupation from Home Bargains shelves

The Boycott Movement in Belfast stated that the Home Bargains retail chain continues to stock more products labelled “Made in Israel” than any other major retailer and that its activists will not back down.

The movement added that customers have begun checking Israeli products in the same way they checked South African products during the apartheid era.

# International News

### 18. American restaurant chain launches a drink called “Free Palestine”

The American restaurant and bookstore chain Busboys and Poets, which operates in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area, has launched a new drink called “Free Palestine.”

According to a report published by Jewish Insider, the chain offered the drink free of charge to the first 100 customers who recorded a video chanting the slogan “Free Palestine,” then posted it on social media and tagged the restaurant’s account.

### 19. NFL star Aziz Al-Shaair honours a young girl who survived the genocide

National Football League (NFL) star Aziz Al-Shaair appeared in his most recent game with the name of Palestinian child Maryam Ghanem written on the black eye strip beneath his eyes.

The gesture of solidarity aimed to draw attention to the story of the three-year-old girl, who miraculously survived an apartment fire in Gaza caused by an Israeli bombardment.

The attack killed her mother and left the child with severe burns.

### 20. “Israeli-Moroccan Academic Partnership” conference prompts campaign urging Moroccan academics to withdraw

The Academic College of Ashkelon, in occupied Ashkelon, is holding a conference entitled “Strengthening Academic Partnership Between Israel and Morocco in the Spirit of the Abraham Accords.”

The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) and the Moroccan Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (MACBI) have called on Moroccan academics to withdraw from the conference.