Epal European Palestinian Media Center Bulletin, Issue No. 2299, Date: Saturday, December 20, 2025

1. Six martyrs, including children, in an Israeli strike targeting a shelter center in Gaza**

Six Palestinians were killed and others injured as a result of Israeli artillery shelling that targeted a school sheltering displaced people in the al-Tuffah neighborhood, northeast of Gaza City, in a new violation of the ceasefire agreement in effect in the Strip.
Local sources reported that the occupation army shelled the surroundings of al-Tuffah School near al-Durra Hospital, resulting in martyrs—some of them torn to pieces—and a number of wounded inside the school, which was sheltering hundreds of displaced people.

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**2. One thousand patients die while waiting for medical evacuation from Gaza**

The World Health Organization announced that more than 1,000 Palestinian patients have died while waiting for medical evacuation from the Gaza Strip since July 2024, amid ongoing restrictions on leaving the territory for treatment.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that 1,092 patients died while waiting for medical evacuation between July 2024 and November 2025, noting that this figure is “likely lower than the actual number.”

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**3. Doctors Without Borders: Gaza’s children are dying from cold, aid must be intensified**

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) warned of rising child deaths in the Gaza Strip due to extreme cold, amid continued restrictions imposed by the occupation authorities on the entry of humanitarian aid, calling for urgent permission to intensify aid deliveries to enable Palestinians to withstand successive cold weather systems.
The organization said that a 29-day-old infant died on Thursday at Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza, just two hours after arriving at the pediatric ward supported by MSF teams, noting that attempts to save the child’s life failed due to severe hypothermia.

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**4. UNRWA staff in Gaza stage sit-in against dismissal decisions and suspension of colleagues’ salaries**

Employees of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in Gaza City staged a sit-in protesting arbitrary dismissal decisions against them and the suspension of salaries for colleagues who are abroad.
Mustafa al-Ghoul, head of the agency’s employees’ union, said during the protest that the demonstration comes in response to the injustice inflicted on employees and the dismissal of some without justification, stressing the importance of UNRWA’s continued presence to support their people.
He explained that employees’ cases are piling up and that injustices are being committed against them, noting that there are 20 dismissed employees based on false allegations and without any investigation.

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**5. UN concern over U.S. sanctions on International Criminal Court judges**

UN Secretary-General António Guterres expressed deep concern over recent U.S. sanctions imposed on two judges of the International Criminal Court.
UN Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq said at a press conference that “the Secretary-General expressed his deep concern over the sanctions on two additional ICC judges under the executive order, as well as the ongoing sanctions imposed on other officials of the ICC and the United Nations.”

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**6. United Nations: Famine recedes in Gaza amid continued food insecurity**

The United Nations announced that famine in Gaza has ended, but the vast majority of the population in the Strip continues to face high levels of food insecurity.
The Rome-based body overseeing the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) said, “Following the ceasefire approved on October 10, 2025, the latest analysis shows a marked improvement in food security and nutrition.”

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**7. Amnesty International calls to stop a ship carrying military equipment to the occupation**

Amnesty International called for action to stop the ship “Holger G,” owned by a German company, which is carrying 440 tons of ammunition and military equipment to Israel.
The UK-based organization said in a statement that the ship flies the Portuguese flag and sailed from India to Israel carrying 440 tons of explosive ammunition components, missiles, and steel intended for military use.

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**8. 170 Belgian artists condemn the occupation’s participation in Eurovision**

One hundred and seventy Belgian artists condemned the decision of the Belgian Radio and Television authority to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 due to the participation of the occupation, considering the move a disregard for crimes and violations committed against the Palestinian people.
The French-language newspaper *La Libre Belgique* published a joint letter signed by the artists, in which they expressed their rejection of politicizing artistic and cultural events and using them to serve propaganda agendas.
The artists affirmed that the occupation government has for years exploited major artistic and cultural events for propaganda purposes to divert attention from the occupation and the apartheid system practiced against the Palestinian people.

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**9. Eurovision threatened with collapse due to insistence on Israel’s participation**

American-European journalist Dave Keating said that the Eurovision Song Contest could become unsustainable if additional countries join those that have announced their withdrawal in protest against allowing Israel to participate.
Keating explained that the European Broadcasting Union would not be able to carry out the required reforms to bring back withdrawing countries, noting that ignoring repeated warnings from participating states has exacerbated the crisis.

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**10. “Palestine Coalition” in Britain condemns repression of the right to protest against solidarity activists**

The Palestine Coalition in the United Kingdom expressed concern and condemnation over escalating measures taken by the Labour government against pro-Palestine activists opposing genocide.
In a statement published on the Palestine Solidarity Campaign website, it said that recent days have witnessed a “notable escalation in attempts to suppress the pro-Palestine solidarity movement, as politicians and police dangerously conflate protest with terrorism, following the horrific attack at Bondi Beach (in Australia), and falsely portray support for Palestinian rights as a threat to Jews.”

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**11. Calls to act against SXSW festival over complicity with genocide-linked companies**

The Union of Musicians and Allied Workers (UMAW), the Austin for Palestine Coalition (AFP), and the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) called on the SXSW festival to adopt a strict ethical policy in its programs and partnerships.
The call followed previous SXSW events that featured speakers from companies and figures implicated in complicity with the genocide in Gaza, including companies such as Palantir and Barclays Bank, and figures like Tony Blair, as well as sessions involving major tech companies such as Amazon, Google, and Microsoft, accused of supporting the Israeli occupation.
The organizations noted that the absence of an ethical policy exposes artists to participation in events complicit with war criminals, emphasizing that the global cultural boycott has become a powerful tool to confront complicity, with thousands of artists and companies participating in boycotts against complicit Israeli institutions.

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**12. Forty-seven days of hunger behind bars for solidarity with Palestine**

Forty-seven days of hunger behind bars because they chose to stand with Palestine. From the “Filton 24” in Britain to our prisoners in Israeli jails, solidarity will always remain a legitimate act, not a crime.

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**13. Revealing a 660% increase in arrests of Palestine supporters in Britain**

Official British figures revealed an unprecedented rise in arrests classified by authorities as “terrorism offenses,” with the number jumping from 248 cases to 1,886 arrests within one year up to September 2025—an increase of nearly 660%—following the ban of the “Palestine Action” movement and its designation as a “terrorist organization.”
According to the data, 86% of the arrests were linked to the movement, particularly during the first three months of enforcing the ban (July–September), which alone saw 1,706 arrests. The decision criminalizes membership or support of the movement with penalties of up to 14 years in prison, even for carrying banners or wearing clothing bearing its name.

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**14. Smashing 47 plates in front of the Ministry of Justice in solidarity with hunger strikers in Britain**

An unprecedented protest took place outside the Ministry of Justice, where supporters of the “Filton 24” activists smashed 47 plates in front of the building, symbolically representing the number of hunger-striking prisoners—one plate for each striker.
Protesters said the action aimed to urgently draw attention to the hunger strikers’ situation and to demand a response to their humanitarian demands.
The protesting groups called on Justice Secretary David Lammy to hold an urgent meeting with representatives of the hunger strikers, considering the situation an emergency requiring immediate intervention to prevent deterioration of prisoners’ health and to secure their basic rights. They stressed the need for swift action, emphasizing that the continued hunger strike represents a humanitarian crisis requiring an immediate and fair government response.

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**15. Angry protests in the United States demand an end to arming Israel**

Pro-Palestine activists shut down the entrance to the Port of Oakland building in the United States, demanding the disruption of military shipments to Israel.