Epal European Palestinian Media Center Bulletin, Issue No. 2436, Date: Saturday, May 9, 2026

1. Israeli shelling and gunfire targeting gatherings of displaced people in Gaza

Israeli occupation forces continued, for the 211th consecutive day, to violate the ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip through artillery shelling, gunfire, and attacks targeting civilians in several areas across the Strip.

Local sources reported that Israeli tanks opened heavy fire east of the city of Khan Younis in southern Gaza, alongside artillery shelling in other parts of the city.

Israeli military boats also fired heavy machine guns intensively off the coast west of Gaza City.

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2. Ongoing attacks by occupation forces and settlers across various areas of the West Bank

Israeli settlers and occupation forces escalated their attacks in different areas of the West Bank, alongside raids, arrests, and field confrontations.

Local sources stated that settlers began constructing a colonial road in the “Si‘a” mountain area between the village of al-Mughayyir and the hamlet of Abu Falah northeast of Ramallah, using a settlement bulldozer that leveled land belonging to Palestinian residents.

The move aims to connect several settlement outposts in the area as part of plans for colonial expansion and the seizure of more Palestinian land.

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3. Injuries, house set on fire, and grave desecration in settler attacks in the West Bank

Several citizens were injured in settler attacks across different parts of the occupied West Bank, which resulted in a house being set on fire and a grave being desecrated.

Local sources reported that three people were injured during a settler attack in the Shuwayka area east of al-Dhahiriya town, south of Hebron in the southern West Bank.

The sources added that settlers burned down a house in the village of al-Lubban al-Sharqiya south of Nablus in the northern West Bank.

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*European*

4. Israeli verbally assaults pro-Palestinian activist in Sweden

#Watch… Because of her pro-Palestinian positions, an Israeli man verbally assaulted Swedish activist Greta Thunberg while she was walking on a street in Stockholm, directing a series of insults and verbal abuse at her.

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5. #Video.. Spanish Foreign Minister Albares: We will continue supporting Gaza

#Watch… Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares affirmed during a speech before the Spanish Parliament his country’s humanitarian commitment toward Gaza, announcing approximately €60 million in aid since 2024 and calling on Israel to immediately lift restrictions on humanitarian aid entering the Strip.

Albares’ statements came during an emergency session dedicated to discussing the “Resilience Flotilla” case after Israel intercepted it in international waters and arrested an activist holding both Spanish and Palestinian citizenship. This prompted the Madrid government to summon the representative of the Israeli embassy for the second time in one week in protest against the extension of his detention.

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6. 93% of Irish people demand Israel’s expulsion from UEFA

An open letter sent by the group “Irish Sport for Palestine” to the Irish Football Association called for boycotting the match against Israel in the UEFA Nations League scheduled for the end of the year.

The letter also cited Israeli violations of UEFA and FIFA regulations by allowing its clubs and teams to play on occupied Palestinian territories.

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7. Week of anger against CAF over complicity in settlement railway project in Spain

The BDS movement called for a global week of action against the Spanish train manufacturer CAF (Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles) from June 6 to June 13 due to its deep complicity in maintaining and expanding the illegal “Jerusalem Light Rail” network.

These trains, manufactured by CAF, are used to connect illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank with West Jerusalem. The projects are built on confiscated Palestinian land and sustained through ethnic cleansing and forced displacement of Palestinians, acts considered war crimes under international law.

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8. Death threats and torture to the point of suffocation against activist Saif Abu Kishk

Sources from the “Resilience Flotilla” reported that Spanish-Palestinian activist Saif Abu Kishk, arbitrarily detained by Israeli authorities after being abducted in international waters, has entered his third consecutive day of a dry hunger strike, abstaining completely from food and water, in protest against escalating torture and mistreatment inside detention centers.

Sources revealed that Abu Kishk was subjected to death threats and threats against his family. He was also reportedly forced into prolonged stress positions so severe that he required additional oxygen due to suffocation.

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9. Italian actor Lino Musella dedicates his “Italian Oscar” to Gaza and the activists of the Resilience Flotilla

Italian actor Lino Musella reaffirmed his support for the Palestinian cause, stating that he “will never stop saying Free Palestine” during the 2026 David di Donatello Awards ceremony in Rome.

Musella also sent a special salute to the activists of the global Resilience Flotilla, who face persecution and abduction by Israeli occupation forces in international waters, expressing full solidarity with their movement to break the siege.

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10. French presidential candidate: confronting the genocide in Gaza is a political and moral duty

Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of the “La France Insoumise” party and candidate for the French presidency, stated that it is his party’s duty to stand at the forefront of forces opposing what he described as the “genocide” in the Gaza Strip and the fascist government of Netanyahu.

Mélenchon argued that the failure to stop Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu since the beginning of the massacres in Gaza enabled him to expand the aggression to Lebanon and continue the killings there as well.

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11. “Blocking mechanism”: Spanish proposal to protect the International Criminal Court

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez urged the European Commission to take practical steps to activate the so-called “blocking mechanism,” a legal effort aimed at shielding judges and prosecutors of the International Criminal Court from external pressure and sanctions amid ongoing investigations into the situation in Gaza.

The Spanish proposal focuses on using this mechanism as a sovereign tool that would allow the European Union to neutralize the effects of decisions and sanctions issued by other states when they affect the independence of its institutions or hinder the work of its judicial bodies.

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12. International Committee to Break the Siege: Resilience Flotilla activists subjected to horrific Israeli abuses

Youssef Ajjisa, head of the International Committee to Break the Siege on Gaza, announced that several activists from the “Resilience Flotilla” had been subjected to what he described as “horrific and blatant” Israeli violations, including sexual assaults, harassment, beatings, and dragging.

Ajjisa explained that the assaults targeted sensitive parts of some activists’ bodies, stating that such practices reveal “the criminal and brutal reality of the occupation” and reflect the level of danger it poses to the world.

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*International*

13. 1,488 Michigan professors support colleague after removal of his pro-Palestinian speech

Professors, along with 754 graduates, signed collective letters supporting Professor Derek Peterson, former chair of the academic senate, after the university removed a speech he delivered during Saturday’s graduation ceremony in which he praised pro-Palestinian student activists.

The speech, described by “The Sunday” newspaper as containing nothing inappropriate, included Peterson raising his voice amid applause from the audience, saying: “Sing for the pro-Palestinian student activists who, over the past two years, have opened our hearts to the injustice and inhumanity committed by Israel in its war on Gaza.”

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14. Largest U.S. teachers’ union accused of “antisemitism” after solidarity protest

The “Louis D. Brandeis Center” filed a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) accusing the largest teachers’ union in the United States (NEA) of “incitement against Jews” after union members expressed support for Palestine during the 2025 Portland conference.

The approximately 300-page complaint described what happened at the conference as a “coordinated attack,” citing testimony from a Jewish delegate who said he saw colleagues “wearing keffiyehs and Palestinian flags” in what he described as a “disturbing” scene.

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15. U.S. prosecutor removed after inciting against pro-Palestinian students

A judge in Santa Clara County issued a rare ruling removing District Attorney Jeff Rosen and his entire office from the prosecution of five Stanford University student protesters supportive of Palestine.

Judge Kelly Paul ruled that Rosen had “incited” against the demonstrators by promoting the case on his campaign fundraising website, placing it under the slogan “Fighting Antisemitism,” and linking the defense of Israel to the defense of America.

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16. Karim Khan: I am facing pressure and intimidation over pursuing occupation leaders

International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan revealed that he had received information indicating he was under surveillance by Russian and Israeli intelligence agencies amid what he described as a campaign of pressure and intimidation aimed at forcing him out of office.

Khan accused the British outlet “Middle East Eye” and members within the court of waging a “dangerous” and “biased” campaign against him related to unproven allegations of sexual misconduct and his investigations into alleged Israeli war crimes.

He also stated that he is facing an “extraordinary campaign of intimidation and pressure” because of his efforts to seek arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

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17. UNRWA: Diseases threaten Gaza residents amid shortages of medicine and aid due to the siege

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) warned of deteriorating health conditions in the Gaza Strip, noting that rats are attacking children at night inside tents while they sleep amid the ongoing Israeli siege and the blocking of aid deliveries.

The agency explained that Gaza’s residents face increasing risks of disease due to displacement, overcrowded tents, lack of clean water, and the collapse of environmental health systems, stressing that the humanitarian situation has become increasingly fragile.