Epal European Palestinian Media Center Bulletin, Issue No. 2537, Date: Wednesday, August 26, 2026

1. Health Ministry: 9 killed in 24 hours, raising the death toll since the Gaza ceasefire to 1,296
The Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip announced that 9 people were killed and 36 injured and taken to hospitals in the Strip over the past 24 hours, amid continued Israeli violations.
The ministry said in its daily report that the death toll since the ceasefire began on October 11, 2025, has risen to 1,296, while the number of injured has reached 4,296. An additional 814 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble.

According to the report, the death toll from the Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023, has risen to 73,431, with 174,437 injured.

2. Israel approves 18 settlement areas of influence in the West Bank
The Commission for Resisting the Wall and Settlements said that the Israeli authorities have approved 18 new and amended settlement areas of influence in the occupied West Bank, in preparation for expanding settlements and establishing additional outposts.
The commission explained in a statement that the package includes areas of influence for new settlements approved by the “Cabinet,” as well as others aimed at turning settlement outposts into independent settlements, alongside amendments and expansions to the areas of influence of existing settlements and settlement councils.

3. Israeli forces take control of UNRWA facility in Qalandia
The national factions said that the seizure by the Israeli authorities of the compound of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in Kafr Aqab, north of occupied Jerusalem, constitutes a continuation of the systematic and ongoing aggression against the Palestinian people, a blatant attack on a UN institution, and a brazen challenge to UN resolutions and international conventions.
The factions said in a statement that the continued international and UN inability to act, and the absence of a genuine response to these repeated Israeli measures—which demonstrate disregard for the UN system—are what encourage Israel to escalate its aggression and impose a policy of fait accompli by force, providing it with cover to continue violating international conventions and norms.

4. Israel issues demolition notices for structures in Kafr Aqab and demolishes others south of Nablus
The Israeli authorities issued demolition notices for a number of structures and buildings owned by Palestinian residents near the separation wall in Kafr Aqab, north of occupied Jerusalem, in a new move on the ground that has heightened residents’ fears over the expanding scope of targeting buildings in the area.
Jerusalem sources reported that reinforced Israeli army forces raided the area adjacent to the section of the separation wall extending through Kafr Aqab and posted demolition notices on the walls and entrances of several structures, in preparation for their removal.

5. Settler attacks in the West Bank rise 63% over seven months
The Commission for Resisting the Wall and Settlements reported a sharp increase in settler attacks in the West Bank during the first seven months of 2026, recording a 63% rise compared with the same period last year.
According to a statement issued by the commission, 4,113 attacks were recorded from the beginning of the year through the end of July, compared with 2,524 attacks during the same period in 2025—an increase of 1,589 attacks.

6. Government Media Office: Israel continues targeting civilians in Gaza amid international silence
The Government Media Office in the Gaza Strip condemned the international community’s silence over the ongoing Israeli crimes and violations in the Strip, stressing that children and civilians continue to be targeted and inhabited homes bombed, in an ongoing breach of the ceasefire agreement.
In a press statement, the Government Media Office said that the continuation of these crimes and violations represents a blatant challenge to the international community, holding Israel and the silent international community fully responsible—legally, morally and historically—for the continuation of what it described as the crime of genocide and the targeting of civilians, children and mosques.

7. Gaza’s children between the joy of playing and the threat of bombing… Kites become a new pretext for escalation
“I broke my son’s plate… I don’t understand how a children’s toy could threaten Israel.” With these words, Umm Mohammad Odeh expressed her astonishment at the latest Israeli threats, following an announcement by Netanyahu and his defense minister, Israel Katz, in a joint statement that targeted killings and evacuations of neighborhoods in the Gaza Strip would be carried out if kite-flying continued.
Umm Mohammad says children’s toys have become luxuries in Gaza because of their high prices and the restrictions on bringing them into the Strip. As a result, parents try to make their children happy with whatever is available: paper, string and wood, which they use to make kites for their children to play with.

8. Calls for urgent intervention to save prisoners from starvation and medical neglect in Israeli prisons
Prisoners’ media outlets warned that malnutrition is threatening the lives of prisoners in “Megiddo” prison, amid a deliberate policy of starvation and medical neglect pursued by the prison administration.
It reported that prisoners are suffering from a severe shortage of food and poor-quality meals, which has caused significant weight loss in recent months. One prisoner lost 18 kilograms, while another lost around 7 kilograms.

It added that scabies continues to spread throughout the prison sections, while a number of prisoners are being denied medical treatment and eyeglasses despite their urgent need for them.

9. #Video… Knesset member and settlers destroy a memorial
#Watch… Under the protection of the Israeli army, Israeli Knesset member Zvi Sukkot, accompanied by settlers, destroys a Palestinian memorial in the village of Madama, near Nablus in the occupied West Bank.
European
10. Netherlands withdraws from “Eurovision 2027” in protest against Israel’s participation
The Dutch public broadcaster “Avrotros” announced on Monday, for the second consecutive year, that it would boycott the 2027 Eurovision Song Contest, describing the competition as having become a “platform for division” because of its association with Israel’s participation in the war on Gaza.
The broadcaster’s secretary-general, Taco Zimmerman, said Eurovision was founded with the aim of bringing peoples and countries closer together, but that the impact of international conflicts on the contest is increasing, undermining its neutrality. He stressed that “Avrotros” no longer sees it as possible to regard the competition as neutral while a country involved in a large-scale military conflict participates, referring to Israel’s war on Gaza, which he described as a war of extermination.

11. Activists smear the building of a company accused of supporting Israel in Britain
#Watch… Activists from the “People Against Genocide” group climbed onto the roof of British aerospace company “Martin-Baker” in Uxbridge and splashed it with red paint, protesting against the company’s supply of ejection seats for F-35 fighter jets to Israel, which are used in bombing Gaza.
12. Activists shut down BAE Systems factory in Samlesbury to prevent the supply of F-35 parts to Israel
Pro-Palestinian activists in northwest Britain shut down a BAE Systems factory in the Samlesbury area, protesting what they described as the company’s complicity in supplying the Israeli military with spare parts for F-35 fighter jets used in the war against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
The protesters began disrupting operations and closing the site, deliberately blockading key entrances and preventing employees and trucks from entering the building. They said they would continue their sit-in to disrupt production lines linked to military support.

13. Public anger against Canadian tourism minister over her role in blocking a boycott resolution against Israel
Activists and supporters of the Palestinian cause attacked Canadian Tourism Minister and Montreal MP Soraya Martinez Ferrada, accusing her of betraying the values of humanity and coexistence after refusing to condemn the war and Israeli crimes.
The public anger followed a vote by Montreal City Council, in which traditional political forces defeated a decisive official proposal calling for the severing of all institutional and economic relations with Israel.

14. Activists organize protest against production of Israeli drones in Britain
Activists marched through the streets of Shenstone in Staffordshire, United Kingdom, carrying a miniature model of an Israeli drone to highlight what they described as the complicity of a local engine factory owned by “Elbit Systems.”
The protesters said that the actual aircraft, which is five times larger than the displayed model, operates with engines manufactured at the British site and used directly, according to them, in sustaining the ongoing campaign against families in the Gaza Strip.

15. Activists protest outside Austrian Embassy in Dublin and call for boycott of Israeli matches
Activists from the “Stop the Game” movement demonstrated outside the Austrian Embassy in Dublin, calling for a sporting boycott of Israel and opposing the use of sport to whitewash what they described as genocide.
The protest, led by activist Damien Farrell, included prominent solidarity organizations such as Action for Palestine Ireland and AIA Dublin, in condemnation of the decision to include the Israeli national team in the UEFA Nations League.

16. Italian band announces participation in international port strike on October 30
An Italian solidarity music group announced, during a joint artistic performance with “Malasuertevisud” in support of Cuba, that it would participate on the ground in the global strike planned to include 50 ports in the Mediterranean, France, the Basque Country and other regions.
The stated aim is to disrupt maritime traffic, cut military supplies and prevent the flow of weapons to Israel.

17. Independent investigation alleges Israeli involvement in killing of journalist Maryam Abu Daqqa
An investigative report published by the British newspaper The Independent sparked widespread anger inside the British Parliament after revealing what it described as compelling evidence suggesting that the Israeli military committed a war crime through a double and systematic strike that killed Palestinian journalist Maryam Abu Daqqa and four of her colleagues inside the Nasser Medical Complex in the Gaza Strip.
The investigation, prepared by international affairs editor Bill Trott in conjunction with the first anniversary of her death, drew on testimony from 17 witnesses, including doctors, journalists, weapons experts and international law specialists, as well as satellite imagery and fragment analysis that reportedly confirmed the use of Israeli 120mm tank shells against media personnel.

18. Israeli man assaults journalist outside Montreal City Hall
A member of the pro-Israel lobby physically assaulted a journalist outside Montreal City Hall in Canada, in an attempt to intimidate media coverage ahead of a vote on an official proposal calling for the severing of institutional relations with Israel.
The assault took place as hundreds of activists and supporters of Palestinian rights gathered to exert public pressure on city council members to pass the resolution, which is supported and promoted by solidarity movements including Montréal Against Apartheid.

International
19. US courts sentence protesters who blocked Golden Gate Bridge in solidarity with Gaza
Judicial authorities in San Francisco sentenced seven protesters to 30 days in prison over their protest activity, which resulted in the closure of the famous Golden Gate Bridge.
The action, which took place in 2024, expressed public opposition to Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip and condemned US policies supporting the military campaign.

The sentence requires half of the term to be served inside San Francisco Jail, while the defendants may serve the remaining days through a special work-release program supervised by the sheriff’s office. The court also ruled that four days the defendants had previously spent in pretrial detention would count toward their total sentences.

20. Artists and technology professionals launch pro-Palestinian solidarity platform in San Francisco
San Francisco saw the launch of a new arts and technology project aimed at amplifying the voice of the Palestinian people and strengthening international solidarity with them in opposition to Israeli policies.
The event, launched by activist Mohammed Othman Hashem in cooperation with Turkish artists Kübra Bayram and Buse Bilan, brought together a group of influencers and creatives to exchange views on the role of creative expression in supporting just causes.

21. Activists call for expulsion of Israeli Medical Association from World Medical Association
International health organizations and solidarity campaigns called for the expulsion of the Israeli Medical Association (IMA) from the World Medical Association (WMA), protesting what they described as its role in legitimizing the war and crimes committed against the Palestinian people.
Health-sector activists said the Israeli association’s positions and its justification of violations are completely incompatible with medical ethics and international humanitarian law, making its immediate removal from the global medical system necessary, in their view.

22. Campaign to boycott “Tatte” bakery over alleged links to settlements in the US
Activists and supporters of the Palestinian cause organized an event to sell homemade baked goods outside “Tatte” bakery, raising donations for the Gaza Strip, which is facing an ongoing military campaign, and raising awareness about the need to boycott the store because of its alleged links to Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
The organizers called on local communities to direct their money toward local alternatives supporting humanitarian work and to discuss the suffering of the Palestinian people rather than purchasing from businesses they say support Israel.

23. Israeli military circles: Netanyahu, Ben-Gvir and Smotrich seek to inflame the West Bank ahead of elections
Israeli military sources revealed that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich intend to inflame the situation in the West Bank as the Knesset elections scheduled for late October approach.
The sources told the newspaper Maariv, according to a translation by the Safa news agency, that there are major disagreements between the military establishment and the political leadership, particularly regarding the West Bank.

They said that “Defense Minister Israel Katz asked us to occupy another camp in the West Bank, but we told him that we have operational control over the situation.”