Epal European Palestinian Media Center Bulletin, Issue No. 2365, Date: Monday, February 23, 2026

1. Woman killed by occupation fire in Beit Lahia amid continued air and artillery attacks

The Israeli occupation army continues to violate the fragile ceasefire in Gaza, carrying out air, ground, and naval attacks on Rafah, eastern Gaza, Al-Bureij camp, and Khan Younis, targeting buildings and displacement centers.

Local sources reported that citizen Basma Aram Banat, 27, was killed after being shot by Israeli occupation forces near the town square of Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip.

During the night, the occupation army carried out demolition operations against residential buildings in eastern Gaza, while also targeting gathering centers for displaced people.

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**2. Fasting in oppression and breaking fast on scraps… Ramadan for prisoners begins without their knowledge and passes under repression**

As the call to prayer rises announcing the arrival of the holy month of Ramadan, homes are lit with lanterns, and families gather around iftar tables, Ramadan begins behind Israeli prison bars in a completely different way.

There, the beginning of the month is unknown, the call to prayer is not heard, and no abundant tables are prepared. It is received like other heavy days — with patience, waiting, and suffering.

Inside the cold, narrow cells, Palestinian prisoners measure time by a strip of light slipping through a small window, if one exists. Most do not even know Ramadan has begun except by chance — through a court session or a passing whisper. Others try to sense the time of dawn or sunset without a clock or call to prayer, while enduring severe food shortages, the absence of suhoor, and delayed iftar.

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**3. Human rights center: Israel kills about 5 Palestinians daily in Gaza**

The Gaza Center for Human Rights said that for the 134th consecutive day, Israel continues to violate the ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip through a systematic policy based on deliberate killings, direct gunfire, air and artillery shelling, home demolitions, undermining humanitarian protocols, and obstructing the entry of aid and fuel.

The center explained that its field team monitors uninterrupted daily violations and documents them according to professional and legal standards. Cumulative data over the past 133 days show that occupation forces committed an average of 13.5 violations per day, following a consistent pattern that empties the agreement of its substance and turns it into a cover for continued aggression.

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**4. Rights body: Ofer Prison administration deprives prisoners of fasting and breaking fast at proper times**

The Commission of Prisoners and Ex-Prisoners Affairs stated that the administration of Ofer Prison is preventing Palestinian prisoners from observing fasting and breaking their fast at the correct times during Ramadan as part of a “systematic punitive policy.”

The commission added that the prison administration refuses to inform prisoners of the dawn and sunset calls to prayer, preventing them from properly performing the fasting obligation and increasing their daily suffering.

In the same context, the commission’s lawyer Khaled Mahajneh told Voice of Palestine Radio that prisoners in Gilboa Prison were surprised by the arrival of Ramadan without any prior notification from the prison administration. Some only learned of the start of the month while appearing before occupation courts.

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**5. “Freedom Gathering”: Serious violations against travelers via Rafah crossing; we demand international oversight**

The “Freedom” human rights institutions coalition expressed deep concern over what it described as serious violations faced by Palestinian citizens attempting to travel or return through the Rafah crossing, amid practices by the Israeli occupation army and armed groups operating outside the law who exploit the chaos for unlawful gains.

The coalition stated that the crossing represents the “only lifeline” for hundreds of thousands of civilians in Gaza, especially the sick, injured, students, stranded individuals, and residency holders. Field testimonies indicate a “systematic pattern of practices that violate human dignity.”

The statement said the coalition received multiple accounts of travelers being detained for long hours — in some cases between 15 and 20 hours — subjected to prolonged and humiliating interrogations, forced to wait in inhumane conditions, and deprived of basic needs, including the sick and elderly. It also reported confiscation and damage of personal belongings, as well as cases of extortion and humiliation because of returning to Gaza.

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**6. More than 100 arrests in the West Bank since the start of Ramadan**

Prisoner advocacy institutions confirmed that Israeli occupation forces have arrested more than 100 citizens from the West Bank — including women, children, and former prisoners — since the beginning of Ramadan, amid a noticeable escalation coinciding with the occupation’s announcement of intensified arrest campaigns during the holy month.

The arrests were distributed across most West Bank governorates, including Jerusalem, which annually witnesses wide arrest campaigns during Ramadan, often ending with expulsion orders from Al-Aqsa Mosque.

The institutions also pointed to the continued escalation of “field interrogations” affecting thousands of citizens, accompanied by physical and psychological abuse no less severe than the violations accompanying formal arrests.

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**7. Abu Diab: The occupation plans to settle the issue of Al-Aqsa and completely cancel Waqf authorities**

Member of the Al-Aqsa Council of Trustees and Jerusalem researcher Fakhri Abu Diab said that the Israeli occupation is planning to settle the issue of Al-Aqsa Mosque by taking full control over it and completely canceling the powers of the Islamic Waqf Department in Jerusalem.

Abu Diab added that after the occupation began treating Al-Aqsa Mosque as a synagogue, it no longer wants to see any Palestinian presence inside and is working to empty it by all means.

He affirmed that the occupation government is taking escalating measures against Al-Aqsa at the expense of freedom of worship and allowing Muslims to pray in its courtyards and prayer halls.

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## *European*

**8. British activist: The history of Palestine will not be erased**

“Watch… ‘You will not erase Palestine and its history.’” An activist accused the British Museum of attempting to erase history and of complicity in the ongoing genocide after it removed the name “Palestine” from some exhibits and paintings.

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**9. Video: Palestinian flag raised at Berlin Film Festival**

The crew of the film “Chronicles of the Time of Siege,” documenting the siege of Yarmouk Camp, appeared wearing keffiyehs and raising the Palestinian flag while participating in the awards ceremony of the 76th Berlin International Film Festival.

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**10. Video: Thousands of Irish protest against the occupation**

Carrying Palestinian flags and banners, thousands demonstrated in the streets of Ireland’s capital, Dublin, demanding an end to Israeli violations in Gaza, the opening of crossings, and the entry of aid to the Palestinian people.

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**11. More than 1,000 local officials support Palestine in Britain**

In a move reflecting growing popular and political solidarity with Palestine, 1,028 local council members in Britain signed a pledge supporting the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people and calling for ensuring that councils are not complicit in crimes committed against them, including divesting pension funds from arms companies involved in the aggression.

The signatories said this step came in direct response to residents’ demands for ethical investment policies reflecting a humanitarian stance rejecting killing and displacement amid what civilians in Gaza are enduring.

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**12. Video: Activists rename streets in solidarity with Palestine in France**

In a symbolic protest action, pro-Palestinian activists in the French cities of Lyon and Villeurbanne replaced street names linked to Israeli settlements with the names of Palestinian cities and villages, rejecting twinning policies between France and Israel that legitimize colonization.

Activists said the initiative aims to raise public awareness about the situation in the Palestinian territories and highlight ongoing Zionist violations.

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**13. Customers demand refunds after being sold Israeli dates**

A store in Paris’s 18th arrondissement sparked widespread anger after being accused of selling Israeli dates labeled as Algerian and South African during Ramadan. Activists viewed this as an attempt to circumvent boycotts of Israeli products and mislead consumers, constituting a breach of commercial trust and consumers’ right to know the source of their purchases.

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**14. Protest outside armed forces offices in Scotland to stop arming Israel**

Activists from the Gaza Genocide Emergency Committee shut down armed forces offices in Glasgow, Scotland, demanding that the British government halt military support for the occupation and end complicity in genocide against Palestinians. Protesters raised slogans condemning continued British military funding and demanding accountability toward Palestinian civilians.

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**15. During award ceremony at Berlin Festival, Palestinian director: Germany is complicit in genocide in Gaza**

Palestinian director Abdullah Al-Khatib accused the German government of complicity in the genocide committed by the Israeli occupation in Gaza during a speech after receiving an award at the 76th Berlin International Film Festival.

His remarks came after his film “Chronicles of the Time of Siege” won Best Feature Film. He stated that as a Palestinian, he felt compelled to speak about his country despite pressures and warnings he said he received before taking the stage as a refugee in Germany.

Al-Khatib stressed that Palestine “will gain its freedom,” expressing hope to one day organize a film festival in Gaza and other Palestinian cities that stands in solidarity with peoples living under siege, occupation, and dictatorship, placing politics, resistance, freedom, and humanity at its core.

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**16. 1,028 British local council members call for non-cooperation with Israel**

More than a thousand British local council members signed a statement calling for making the Palestinian cause central to the upcoming local elections on May 7 and urging councils not to cooperate with Israel.

According to a statement by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, 1,028 council members signed the declaration titled “Local Councillors’ Pledge for Palestine.” The statement emphasizes that Palestine should be a key issue in local elections that will determine 5,014 council members and six mayors across 136 areas, including all London boroughs, and that local leaders should commit to protecting Palestinian rights.

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## *International*

**17. Chants outside U.S. Embassy in Seoul condemning American role in Gaza war**

South Korea’s capital, Seoul, witnessed a protest outside the U.S. Embassy where demonstrators chanted in Arabic, Korean, and English condemning the American role in the war on Gaza. Participants raised the slogan: “America, you cannot hide,” accusing the United States of involvement in genocide.

According to participants, Korean police attempted to intervene and issued warnings to stop the chants before withdrawing. Organizers concluded the event by affirming continued solidarity actions in the coming weeks.

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**18. Protests outside ‘Reliance Trends’ branches in India over support for the occupation**

Several Indian cities — including Hyderabad, Mumbai, New Delhi, Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada, and Pune — witnessed coordinated solidarity actions with the Palestinian people in the form of protests outside “Reliance Trends” branches.

The events were organized by the Indian People in Solidarity with Palestine (IPSP), with participation from boycott movement activists in India, calling for a boycott of Reliance Trends stores owned by businessman Mukesh Ambani.

Organizers said the protests aim to “expose long-standing ties between Reliance and Israel,” accusing the company of supporting the Israeli economy amid what they described as “genocide” against the Palestinian people, assisted by the United States and other complicit governments.

In a statement, IPSP said that “Reliance’s complicity spans more than two decades,” including investments in fuel storage and telecommunications sectors within what it called an apartheid state, adding that a 2024 joint project between Reliance and the Israeli company Delta Galil “strengthened the Israeli economy.”