🟡 Statement Issued by the Media Office of the Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine

A leadership delegation from the Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine will arrive tonight in Sharm El-Sheikh to participate in the ongoing indirect negotiations concerning a ceasefire, the withdrawal of the occupation army, reaching a prisoner exchange deal, and the entry of aid into the Gaza Strip.

The Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine – Media Office
Wednesday, 16 Rabi' al-Thani 1447 AH | October 8, 2025 AD On the ground, the Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of PIJ, marked the second anniversary of the October operation by reaffirming a pledge to continue resistance until occupation ends. The group said it seeks an end to the war and lifting of the siege — but warned that enemy prisoners “will not see the light of day except through an honorable exchange deal in which the Zionist entity commits to ending the war.”

The statement also praised allied forces and urged intensified actions across the West Bank. Full statement below.

Swedish activist Greta Thunberg raised her fist as she and about 160 other Global Sumud Flotilla participants arrived in Greece to roaring cheers. Crowds welcomed them after their release from illegal Israeli detention.

Greta later addressed supporters — her remarks are below. Greta Thunberg:

“I could talk for a very, very long time about our mistreatment and abuses in our imprisonment. Trust me. But that is not the story.

What happened here was Israel… continuing to worsen and escalate their genocide and mass destruction with genocidal intent, attempting to erase an entire population, an entire nation in front of our very eyes.”

“Hamas’s Strategic Gamble”

Thread on the latest report by Drop Site’s Jeremy Scahill 🧵

1. Trump’s Plan and the Stakes
➤ Trump unveiled a 20-point Gaza ceasefire plan, framing it as an ultimatum: accept or face escalation.
➤ Plan includes prisoner exchange, ceasefire, aid, withdrawal — but also Palestinian national issues like foreign troop deployment, an international board run by Trump and Tony Blair, and Palestinian disarmament.
➤ Both Trump and Netanyahu said rejection would mean intensified war. 2. Limits of Mandate

➤ Palestinian factions agreed Hamas and Islamic Jihad could negotiate on exchange, ceasefire, aid, and withdrawal.
➤ Mohammed al-Hindi (Islamic Jihad deputy head) told Drop Site:
“Regarding the resistance factions, our jurisdiction is concerning matters of prisoner exchanges in return for halting the aggression, withdrawal, the entry of aid, and stopping the policy of displacement against our people. As for the national issues, the resistance factions are not authorized to speak on them alone, as these concern all factions and forces of the Palestinian people everywhere.”

REPORT | Dr. Mohammed Al-Hindi, deputy head of Islamic Jihad, on Trump’s Gaza plan, and the wider struggle:

1. A Plan Drafted for Netanyahu
➤ Al-Hindi called the Trump draft “a congratulatory note between Trump and Netanyahu” — written to give the occupation, on paper, what it failed to win after two years of war.

➤ He explained that the revisions openly legitimize Netanyahu’s core positions: rejecting a Palestinian state outright and reducing it to a mere “aspiration,” while permitting annexation of the West Bank.

➤ Trump himself, Al-Hindi noted, “said he now accepts Netanyahu’s rejection of a Palestinian state,” showing the draft was tailored to accommodate Israel’s stubbornness and defiance of international law and repackage it as international consensus.

2. Criminalizing Resistance
➤ The text begins with the demand that Gaza be “free of terrorism.” Al-Hindi said this means nothing less than “free of resistance” and Gaza stripped of arms necessary for liberation.

➤ He stressed that this wording locks in Israel’s version of events:

“From the very first line, it reinforces Israel’s claim that the problem is a security problem, that on October 7 terrorists attacked Israel. It erases that this is an occupation, decades of aggression, war crimes, and ethnic cleansing.”

➤ By framing the resistance as “terrorism,” he argued, the draft makes any Palestinian faction a criminal entity and rewrites the entire conflict: “It is not a question of occupation and national liberation anymore, but of ‘terrorists’ who must be disarmed and expelled.”

3. Trusteeship and U.S.–Israeli Control
➤ Al-Hindi warned the plan imposes a system of foreign control that strips Palestinians of sovereignty: It hands sovereignty to a “Board of Peace” led by Trump and Tony Blair, effectively giving security to Israel and municipal services to unelected technocrats.

➤ Under this arrangement, all political, security, and economic decisions would fall under international trusteeship — an American mandate in Israel’s favor.

➤ “It cancels any national political process, even with the Palestinian Authority, which would be forced into “reforms” based on American and Israeli standards,” he warned.

4. Al-Hindi’s On Terms of the Deal
➤ He said the factions “have no objection to a comprehensive deal” where all prisoners are released in exchange for:
 1. A real and permanent halt to aggression
 2. Full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza
 3. Relief and reconstruction
for the Palestinian people.

➤ He said: “We seek amendments that guarantee withdrawal, the halt to aggression, and safeguards against displacement. We want a written guarantee that the war will stop… and we want to guarantee against expelling our people outside Gaza.”

5. The 72-Hour Demand is Impossible
➤ The draft requires all captives be released within 72 hours.

➤ “Even if they were in one house, it could not be done in 72 hours. With the destruction, bombardment, and graves of Gaza — everyone knows this is impossible.”

6. Withdrawal Must Be Scheduled
➤ The only scheduled item in the plan is the release of Israeli prisoners.
➤ “[Israeli] withdrawal is left vague and tied to disarmament. We demand it be phased and explicitly linked to prisoner releases.”

7. Guarantees to Stop the War
➤ Al-Hindi insisted that without guarantees, Israel will resume killing under any pretext:
“We want a written guarantee of a true end to aggression. Not two days for prisoner handover, then Israel resumes its massacres, as it has in Lebanon and Syria.”

8. On Disarmament
➤ “These are not the weapons of Hamas or Jihad. They are the weapon of the Palestinian people. We are in a stage of national liberation. We will not give them up.”
➤ He warned that surrendering arms is a trap: “When Palestinians surrendered their weapons in Lebanon, the massacres of Sabra and Shatila followed.”

Continued… 👇 9. Trump’s Threats Do Not Intimidate
➤ Trump threatened to give Israel a green light to “finish the job militarily” if factions refused within 72 hours.
➤ Al-Hindi replied: “Tons of American bombs have already fallen on our people from American planes with American intelligence. This threat does not frighten us.”

10. Starvation and Massacres
➤ He acknowledged the Israeli siege, engineered starvation, and daily civilian massacres as “the real pressure” facing the resistance.
➤ “Our hearts bleed for our people. But does this plan stop the aggression? That is the key.”

11. National Project Cannot Be Surrendered
➤ Al-Hindi said the plan attempts to liquidate the Palestinian national project and replace it with foreign trusteeship under Trump, Blair, and Israel.
➤ “These questions — Gaza, the West Bank, the future of Palestine — belong to all Palestinians. No faction can surrender them.”

12. Closing Message
➤ “We will not be deceived by illusions and false promises. We will not allow the issue to be reframed as ‘Palestinian terrorism.’ The real issue is occupation, U.S.–Israeli hegemony, and genocide. Our people are not broken, and we will not surrender our rights.”

📌 TLDR: Al-Hindi divided the issues raised by the deal into two distinct buckets.

➤ Resistance Issues:

The exchange of captives, a ceasefire, and Israeli withdrawal — all require clear schedules and guarantees.

And seek clarification on clause about demands to ‘decommission arms,’ since “these are the arms of the Palestinian people in a liberation struggle.”

➤ National Issues:

Broader questions—“the day after,” governance of Gaza, the West Bank, and the future of the Palestinian cause—cannot be decided by one faction.

Al-Hindi said these require all-Palestinian consultation. He warned the current Trump plan reduces Palestinian sovereignty to a trusteeship, giving Israel security control, the U.S. hegemony, and “technocrats” municipal authority—an arrangement he called an American mandate in Israel’s favor.

1/ THREAD:
🇨🇴 Colombian President Gustavo Petro’s final address to the UN General Assembly directly confronted Donald Trump, who he said was complicit in genocide in Palestine, and was now seeking to bring that genocidal violence to the Latin American sphere. The speech, which lasted nearly 45 minutes - denounced war crimes, genocide in Palestine, cruel immigration policies, America’s so-called war on drugs, and climate inaction - prompting the U.S. delegation to walk out. Here are the key moments 🧵

It began:

“This is my last speech here as president. It is my fourth.

In the first, I told this Assembly that a conflict was likely to erupt, both in Ukraine and in Palestine. I called for a peace conference. But those of us without bombs or big budgets are not listened to here.

Four years later, the horrific situation in Palestine has shown me that the same—or nearly the same—could happen in the Colombian Caribbean, when missiles are fired at young, unarmed people in the sea.

Now we face a different situation—perhaps a more global one. Today’s barbarism is planetary, falling on all of humanity. Missiles rained down on 17 unarmed youths in the Caribbean Sea—perhaps some Colombians. Millions of migrants are persecuted, imprisoned, chained, and expelled. Missiles rain down on the 70,000 people of Gaza, killing them. The climate crisis remains unaddressed, its words erased by Trump. All of this is connected, all part of the same cause.” 2/
On Palestine and Gaza:

Petro said today’s barbarism is global. Missiles fell on 17 unarmed youths in the Caribbean “just as they fall on the 70,000 people in Gaza and kill them.” He accused Trump of being complicit in “genocide,” declaring: “It is genocide and we must shout it over and over.”

🧵 THREAD | Senior Hamas Official Osama Hamdan Interviewed by Al Jazeera (September 21, 2025)

1. On Negotiations & Trust in Mediators

Hamdan said the Israeli attack on Hamas’ negotiating team in Doha proved “this enemy is treacherous and aggressive, and cannot be trusted for even one moment.” He accused the United States – despite acting as a mediator with Qatar and Egypt – of giving Israel time and political cover to continue the genocide, citing Washington’s recent veto of the UN Security Council resolution for an immediate ceasefire supported by 14 other members.

He said there is no serious proposal on the table now, and that Hamas would only consider an agreement that includes:
▪️A complete cessation of aggression and a permanent ceasefire
▪️Full withdrawal from Gaza
▪️Open crossings for unrestricted aid
▪️Reconstruction of Gaza
▪️A fair prisoner exchange

He noted that Hamas has never insisted on participation in Gaza governance as a condition, and that they are open to a technocratic administration eventually leading to general Palestinian elections. The obstacle, he insisted, is Israel’s intransigence, not the Palestinian position nor the Arab mediators. 2. On Disarmament Demands

Hamdan rejected the idea that Hamas might disarm: “The talk of giving up weapons is not on the table.” He argued that surrendering arms would mean surrendering the philosophy of resistance — exactly what colonial powers have always wanted. Palestinians, he said, tried the path of compromise in Oslo, giving up 77% of historic Palestine, yet still received nothing. “The right way forward is ending the occupation entirely, not bargaining away more rights.”

🚨ACLED: 94% of Palestinians Killed Since March Are Civilians

New data from ACLED, the UN- and Western-backed conflict tracker, shows Israel’s post-ceasefire campaign in Gaza has produced one of the highest civilian death rates of the war, with roughly 15 civilians killed for every fighter.

▪️ Mass Civilian Deaths: Since Israel broke the January ceasefire on March 18, more than 16,000 Palestinians have been killed, nearly all civilians. Israel claims over 2,100 Hamas “operatives” were killed, but ACLED puts the figure closer to 1,100 — noting that Israel counts Hamas political and civilian governance figures and members of other groups in its tally.

▪️ Deliberate Destruction: Nearly 500 building demolitions have been recorded since March – almost as many as the previous 15 months combined – as Israel expands buffer zones, clears neighborhoods, and reoccupies Rafah, Khan Younis, and eastern Gaza City.

▪️ Targeted Killings of Government and Internal Security Officials in Gaza: ACLED records systematic Israeli strikes on Gaza’s government and internal security officials – police, aid security committees, and civil servants – wiping out the very infrastructure that coordinated evacuations, managed aid, and kept order. ACLED says this destruction is part of a broader Israeli strategy to prevent any alternative Palestinian governance from emerging and to keep Gaza “in a state of permanent crisis” by “pushing Gaza toward unlivable conditions.”

▪️ Weaponized Aid: ACLED found no evidence of systematic Hamas looting of UN aid. Instead, Israel’s U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation system has fueled chaos, with over 1,300 killed near its aid sites, while Gaza is pushed toward “unlivable” conditions to drive “voluntary emigration” and block any path to Palestinian sovereignty.

▪️ Intra-Palestinian Violence: ACLED tracks nearly 120 incidents involving Hamas’ Sahm Unit – a plainclothes force of former police, clan members, and volunteers formed to keep order as Gaza’s government was bombed apart. Sahm has punished looters, detained suspected collaborators, and enforced curfews around aid sites. It has also fought rival militias backed by Israel in Rafah, which ACLED links to looting and lawlessness in Israeli-controlled areas.

▪️ Hamas Adapts: Despite nearly two years of war and thousands of members killed, Hamas has not collapsed. ACLED says the group has shifted to guerrilla warfare — using IEDs, booby-traps, and ambushes that have killed about 50 Israeli soldiers since March — and continues to recruit new fighters. Hamas now governs through a decentralized system and a secret cash-based network that keeps paying partial salaries to about 30,000 employees, allowing it to maintain municipal services and aid committees. ACLED says Israel’s push for “total victory” has not eliminated Hamas or the basic functions of its rule. 📊 Key Charts:

1. ACLED data show Hamas has sharply reduced direct battles with Israeli forces since March, shifting to guerrilla tactics and smaller, deadlier strikes. Engagements fell by nearly two-thirds compared to the six months before the ceasefire — even as Israel expanded its ground presence to 75% of Gaza. The data underscore that Israel’s “total victory” strategy has not eliminated Hamas but turned the war into a long, grinding campaign.

🧵THREAD: Verified list of some of the 60+ Americans facing firings, suspensions & investigations over comments on Charlie Kirk’s assassination. As of 1 a.m. Sept 15, there are 50-70+ confirmed cases spanning schools & universities, airlines, tech firms, media outlets & public agencies are facing discipline. Over half involve educators. This wave of repression & cancel culture is being driven by coordinated doxxing from Libs of TikTok & allies.

Each post below lists the person (if named), comment, employer action, and source. 📚 Education (Teachers, Professors, University Staff)

1) Laura Sosh-Lightsy, Asst. Dean, Middle Tennessee State Univ. (TN):

FB post — “Looks like ol’ Charlie spoke his fate into existence. Hate begets hate. ZERO sympathy,” referencing Kirk’s 2023 gun-violence comments as a “prudent deal” for 2A rights. Fired after Sen. Marsha Blackburn called for termination; school cited conduct policy. Publicized via Libs of TikTok. (NBC; X/Libs of TikTok)

🇺🇸 House Passes NDAA Packed With Anti-BDS & Pro-Israel Measures

The House approved the $848B FY26 defense bill (231–196) — stuffed with amendments punishing boycotts of Israel, expanding billions in U.S.-Israel weapons programs, and advancing new measures to further militarize Gaza’s border with Egypt — plus a separate bill letting the State Dept. revoke passports for speech.

Here’s what passed — and what’s next 🧵

📌 Source: @FMEP’s Sept. 12 Legislative Roundup

(Cartoon: April 2, 2024) 2 – Pentagon Contract BDS Ban

Two overlapping amendments — from Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) and Lauren Boebert (R-CO) — bar the Pentagon from contracting with any entity that boycotts Israel or its settlements.

This effectively blacklists NGOs, companies, and potentially individuals who support boycotts, forcing them to choose between free expression and federal contracts.

🔴 Breaking: ICE Agent Kills Man in Franklin Park, Illinois

A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent shot Silverio Villegas-Gonzalez Friday morning during what DHS calls “targeted law enforcement activity” near O’Hare International Airport. Officials say Villegas-Gonzalez “resisted” arrest, “attempted to drive his vehicle into the arrest team,” and dragged an agent before being shot.

“Fearing for his life, the officer discharged his firearm and struck the subject,” the DHS statement added. The claims have not yet been independently verified. DHS highlighted a past reckless-driving charge but gave no reason for Friday’s arrest. CBS News reports the agent suffered serious injuries but is now in stable condition.

The shooting comes amid “Operation Midway Blitz,” Trump administration’s sweeping immigration crackdown across the State of Illinois.

🎥 Drop Site contributor Taha Syed (@MSyedt) filmed protests this morning outside ICE’s Broadview Village facility, the primary processing center for detainees in the Chicago area. Additional footage from Taha Syed:

🚢 The Global Sumud Flotilla—the largest civilian mission to break Gaza’s siege—launches today, with 50+ ships from 44 countries. Drop Site editor Alex Colston is on board and will be reporting live as it sails from Barcelona toward Gaza. 🎥 Before the launch today, Drop Site filmed scenes at the port in Barcelona as about 30 boats of the Global Sumud Flotilla prepared to sail toward Gaza. The launch included a press conference with the flotilla’s steering committee, joined by public figures sailing aboard, including Swedish activist Greta Thunberg and actor Liam Cunningham.

🚨 At least five Palestinian journalists were among 20 people killed in a “double tap” Israeli strike on Nasser Medical Complex — the largest and only functioning hospital in southern Gaza.

Those killed include:
▪️Hussam al-Masri (Reuters)
▪️Mohammad Salama (Al Jazeera)
▪️Mariam Abu Daqqa (freelance/AP), ▪️Ahmed Abu Aziz (Quds Network)
▪️Moaz Abu Taha (NBC)

Journalists, doctors, and civil defense crews who rushed to treat the wounded and document the bombing were then murdered in the follow-up strike. Horrific footage shows bodies torn apart in the hospital’s corridors.

We’re putting together a thread with more footage and details. Israeli journalist Yuval Abraham shared the moment the second strike hit the hospital, posted below. 🧵 Photojournalist Hussam Al-Masry, Reuters

🚨IMPORTANT:

Palestinian prisoners’ rights groups released a new report today based on testimonies provided to lawyers visiting Gaza detainees held in Israel’s underground “Rakevet” section of Ramla Prison and the “Sde Teiman” military camp — both notorious sites of torture.

We share the full report —“Enduring Hell: Gaza Detainees Face Severe Israeli Torture and Terror Behind Bars” — below 👇🏼🧵 1/
Enduring Hell: Gaza Detainees Face Severe Israeli Torture and Terror Behind Bars
August 20, 2025

Briefing by the Commission of Detainees Affairs’ and the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society

Ramallah, occupied Palestine – Nearly two years into the Gaza genocide and severe crimes against Palestinian political detainees held in the Israeli occupation’s prisons continue. Those abducted from the occupied Gaza Strip are enduring the worst levels of torture and abuse compared with any other detainees.

The Commission of Detainees Affairs’ and the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society release this new briefing based on testimonies obtained – under strict conditions – by lawyers during visits to detainees conducted between late July and mid-August.

The visits were conducted specifically in the underground “Rakevet” section of Ramla Prison, and the “Sde Teiman” military camp, both notorious for systematic torture of Palestinians arrested from occupied Gaza.

1/
Israeli PM Netanyahu said in Jerusalem last month:

“There is no policy of starvation in Gaza, and there is no starvation in Gaza. We enable humanitarian aid throughout the duration of the war to enter Gaza – otherwise, there would be no Gazans.”

But Israel’s own government data shows he is not telling the truth. ⬇️🧵
(Report by @MazMHussain and @MeghnadBose93) 2/
Records from COGAT, Israel’s aid-monitoring agency, show that in March and April 2025 Israel let in zero food aid to Gaza. This came right as famine exploded.

From May–July, food resumed at record lows, far below survival needs.

📊 Chart: Tonnes of food aid allowed into Gaza

🚨 BREAKING: After far-right influencer @lauraloomer raged online about a few severely injured Palestinian children arriving in the U.S. for life-saving medical interventions, the State Department announced it has suspended all visitor visas for individuals from Gaza.

On Twitter, the State Department indicated no more children in urgent need of medical treatment will be allowed into the U.S. “while it conducts a full and thorough review of the process and procedures used to issue a small number of temporary medical-humanitarian visas in recent days.”

Loomer had tagged Secretary Rubio and the department in a series of frenzied posts yesterday, demanding wounded Palestinian children be barred from receiving medical care in the U.S. The videos she highlighted shared the work of HEAL Palestine, a U.S.-registered nonprofit that arranges specialized, life-saving care for severely injured children from Gaza—children who cannot receive adequate treatment locally—and has brought dozens to U.S. hospitals so far.
✨ Story of one girl among the tens of thousands of children in Gaza who have been severely wounded in the US-Israeli genocide. Through @healpalestine_ , she was able to receive life-saving medical care in the US that she could not get in Gaza.

Watch AJ: aje.io/Leyan x.com/dropsitenews/s…

BREAKING: Surrounded by guards and cameras, Israel’s extremist minister Itamar Ben Gvir stormed the solitary confinement cell of Marwan Barghouti — the most popular Palestinian political leader and a unifying national figure, imprisoned since 2002 — in “Ganot” prison, to threaten a shackled and visibly distressed Barghouti.

➤ Ben Gvir to Barghouti: “Whoever messes with the people of Israel, whoever murders our children, whoever murders our women, we will obliterate them. You will not defeat us.”

➤ Raed Abu al-Hummus, head of the Palestinian Prisoners’ and Ex-Prisoners’ Affairs Commission, said: “The criminal Ben Gvir’s arrival at leader Marwan Barghouti’s cell is a direct threat to his life.” He described the threat as “public” and “a dangerous indicator of the intentions concealed by this troubled racist.”

➤ Abu al-Hummus added:“Ben Gvir has tortured prisoners in front of cameras, and he has many previous offenses filled with hatred and racism. For him to dare to attack a leader of the stature of Abu al-Qassam is a clear violation of all red lines, and we are concerned for his life."

➤ He called on Palestinians and international bodies to take immediate action to protect Barghouti. In May 2024, senior Palestinian Authority officials — including Hussein al-Sheikh, the PA’s secretary-general and top liaison with Israel — told mediators they did not want Marwan Barghouti freed.

Imprisoned since 2002 and serving five life sentences, Barghouti is the most popular Palestinian political leader and a unifying national figure. Hamas has kept him, alongside PFLP leader Ahmad Sa’adat, at the top of its prisoner release list since the first negotiations. Israel has consistently vetoed his release, including in the 2011 Shalit deal.

Barghouti’s popularity — and his calls for cooperation between factions — observers believe is viewed as a direct threat by Mahmoud Abbas to his grip on power in Ramallah. Palestinian rights advocates describe him as the figure most capable of uniting a fractured leadership and potentially winning a presidential election if freed.

The photos below show Barghouti in 2004 (age 45), in 2012 (53), and in 2025 (age 66) in images released today.

🟢 THREAD:

1. Dr. Basem Naim, senior Hamas official told Drop Site News yesterday: “The current leadership in Israel… a fascist and racist government, is converting this conflict from a political conflict about statehood, about borders, about people, into a religious conflict. And if this happens and we reach an irreversible point—if it becomes a religious conflict—there will be no chance for negotiations because then you are negotiating about beliefs and I think no one will compromise.”

That danger was on full display in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s recent i24NEWS interview, where he openly embraced the vision of a “Greater Israel” — a concept rooted in biblical claims to land from the Nile to the Euphrates encompassing all of occupied Palestine, parts of Syria, Jordan, Lebanon and Egypt. Netanyahu called himself on a “historic and spiritual mission” spanning generations, beaming when former MK Sharon Gal presented him with an amulet depicting the “Promised Land.” Netanyahu was discussing borders or policy in the language of prophecy and religious destiny.

In a conflict where Hamas is cast as the religious zealot, Netanyahu and U.S. allies are increasingly invoking prophecy to justify genocide and a land grab, driving the conflict toward an irreconcilable point. 🧵⬇️ 2. Speaking to Al Arabiya, Naim said this messianic framing was being encouraged and reinforced by top U.S. officials. He pointed to House Speaker Mike Johnson’s recent visit to an illegal West Bank settlement, where Johnson — championing “red heifer” prophecy rituals tied to evangelical visions of the apocalypse — met with settler leaders, and declared the “mountains of Judea and Samaria…the rightful property of the Jewish people,”

Naim said “backing up such ideological psychopathic ministers” in Israel fuels the transformation of a solvable political dispute into a zero-sum holy war.

Gaza’s Government Media Office issued a point-by-point rebuttal to the claims Netanyahu made during a Sunday press conference in Jerusalem:

Thread 🧵

1. Claim: “Our goal is not to occupy Gaza, but to liberate it.”

Response: This is blatant deception of public opinion. Ministers in the Israeli occupation government have openly declared their plans to occupy the entire Gaza Strip and even re-settle it. Among these ministers are Bezalel Smotrich (Minister of Finance), Itamar Ben-Gvir (Minister of National Security), Orit Strook (Minister of Settlement and National Missions), and Amichai Eliyahu (Minister of Heritage). Their statements—documented in audio and video—match the reality on the ground: comprehensive destruction, forced displacement, and measures paving the way for permanent control. Netanyahu lies as he breathes. 2. Claim: Israel’s goal is “Disarming Hamas and establishing a non-Israeli civil administration.”

Response: The truth is that the Israeli occupation authorities' actual goals are threefold: genocide and systematic killing, mass destruction, and forced displacement, as occupation officials themselves have repeatedly stated. The numbers alone reveal the extent of the massacre being perpetrated: We are talking today about 61,430 martyrs and 153,213 wounded who arrived at hospitals. Furthermore, the percentage of total destruction in the Gaza Strip has exceeded 88% of all vital sectors: hospitals, schools, universities, mosques, churches, homes, neighborhoods, residential buildings, towers, and all various vital facilities. This has led to the forced displacement of more than 1.9 million civilians in the Gaza Strip. All of this is due to the occupation's policies of killing, destruction, forced displacement, and the obliteration of entire residential neighborhoods.

🧵THREAD: In an in-depth interview with Ultra Palestine, senior Hamas official Husam Badran — head of the group’s National Relations Office and a member of its political bureau — detailed behind-the-scenes ceasefire negotiations, coordination with resistance factions, and why Palestinian unity remains stalled.

Badran said Hamas consults with 10 Palestinian factions and independent political figures during talks, and offered insight into:

▪️ The war on Gaza & indirect ceasefire talks
▪️ Relations with Fatah & the PLO
▪️ Stalled Palestinian unity efforts
▪️ US role in blocking a negotiated ceasefire agreement

Here’s what he said ⤵️ 1️⃣ Gaza war is a collective concern

Badran stressed that Hamas sees the Gaza war as affecting “the entire Palestinian people,” not just the movement. Over 18 days of intense talks last month, Hamas held four full rounds of consultations — “every two or three days” — with 10 different factions and independent political figures to brief them on developments and take their views into account.

“We take their opinions seriously when making decisions.”

REPORT: Scabies outbreak in Israeli prisons exposes systemic neglect and abuse

Israeli prisons are in the midst of a scabies epidemic — a skin infection caused by mites that spread in unsanitary, overcrowded conditions. Haaretz reported in November 2024 that a quarter of all Palestinian detainees had been infected in recent months. The worst outbreaks were in Megiddo, Negev, Nafha, and Rimon prisons.

A January 2025 breakdown shared by the Palestinian Center for Prisoners Advocacy cited:
▪️ 3,000 cases in Negev
▪️ 1,000 in Megiddo
▪️ 700 in Rimon
▪️ 500 in Nafha

That’s 5,200 cases — nearly half the estimated total prison population.

Scabies is also affecting foreigners detained for just a few days. U.S. labor organizer Chris Smalls and Brazilian activist Thiago Ávila, both abducted during the Freedom Flotilla mission, say they contracted scabies within 72 hours of Israeli detention. “The prison conditions were horrible,” Smalls told Democracy Now! on August 5. “I contracted scabies.”

Meanwhile, Muhammad Ibrahim, a 16-year-old American citizen, has been detained without trial for 5 months in Megiddo, where he too developed scabies. His family says he’s lost 26 pounds and has received no meaningful consular protection.

Palestinian prisoners describe squalid, inescapable suffering. “We stopped dreaming of leaving,” one said. “We started dreaming of getting treated.”

🎥 Watch Chris Smalls’ testimony in the clip below with @kthalps. Thiago Ávila’s video showing his scabies infection is also included below.

📸 Additional photos and testimony from Palestinian detainees in the thread.
Prisoners describe constant itching, festering rashes, denial of medical treatment, and isolation. As one survivor put it: “We stopped dreaming of leaving… we started dreaming of getting treated.”

Other victims report being classified into “zombie” sections in Negev and Rimon prisons.

🚨 Drop Site has obtained the full letter sent by Hamas to the UN Security Council ahead of Tuesday’s meeting on the starvation crisis in Gaza. We’re publishing it in full below.

📎 For full context, read Jeremy Scahill and Jawa Ahmad’s accompanying report for Drop Site News — linked at the bottom of the thread.
—

📌 Letter regarding the United Nations Security Council session convened to discuss the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip (05 August 2025)

The United Nations Security Council will convene tomorrow, Tuesday, 05 August 2025, to deliberate the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, at a time when the United States and Israel are directing the focus toward the issue of the Israeli occupation soldiers held captive there—soldiers who were captured from within their tanks and military barracks that have besieged Gaza for seventeen years, in a legitimate act of resistance under international law, and who are now enduring the same tragic conditions suffered by the residents of the Gaza Strip that are imposed by the occupation authorities.

The catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza, resulting from the ongoing crime of genocide perpetrated by the occupation regime, necessitates urgent international action and the mobilization of all capabilities to bring an end to this humanitarian catastrophe, which has so far resulted in 60,839 martyrs and 149,588 injured, including 1,487 martyrs and more than 10,578 wounded among those waiting for aid at the gates of the American-Israeli (GHF) organization and at gathering points for humanitarian assistance—due to the starvation policy deliberately used by the occupation regime as a weapon of war against our people.

This session is convened while Gaza suffers from a deliberate starvation policy imposed by the occupation regime since 2 March 2025, marked by the complete tightening of the siege and the prevention of entry of essential and life-saving supplies, as more than 22,000 aid trucks—most of them belonging to international and UN organizations—remain at the crossing gates, deliberately blocked by the occupation authorities under a systematic policy of “engineering starvation, siege, and chaos” as part of the ongoing crime of genocide.

As a result of this catastrophic situation in the Gaza Strip, the percentage of Palestinian families facing food insecurity has reached 96%, while 90% of the population lacks access to potable water (according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, OCHA). Furthermore, hospitals are experiencing widespread destruction, a severe shortage of medicine and medical consumables, and depletion of healthcare personnel. Amid this catastrophic health situation, and due to a severe shortage of infant formula, medication, and health supplies necessary to address cases of hunger, the total number of deaths from famine and malnutrition has reached 175 martyrs, including 93 children.

Your Excellency,

As you convene to discuss the matter of Israeli prisoners held in Gaza—raised by the occupation regime—we wish to draw your esteemed attention to the appalling conditions endured by the Palestinian detainees in the ‘Israeli’ prisons and military detention centers, whose officially declared number stands at approximately 10,800 detainees, including 3,629 held under “administrative detention” without charge, and more than 450 children. This is in addition to detainees held in military camps operated by the occupation army, estimated to number in the thousands (according to reports, more than 4,400), who are subjected to extremely harsh conditions, including torture, starvation, deprivation of their most basic rights, and whose fate remains unknown.

Under these inhumane conditions endured by the Palestinian detainees in the occupation regime’s prisons and detention facilities—supervised directly by the far-right minister accused of terrorist activity, Itamar Ben Gvir—76 Palestinian prisoners have lost their lives due to torture, starvation, and medical neglect since the beginning of the genocidal war on Gaza, including 46 martyrs from the Gaza Strip. As for detainees held in military detention centers, particularly in the notorious “Sde Teiman” facility, the occupation authorities have denied all international organizations access to them, despite leaked accounts by enemy soldiers indicating that these detainees are subjected to torture, sexual assault, starvation, and degrading treatment that violates their human dignity.

For the Israeli prisoners held by the resistance in Gaza, they are experiencing the same conditions as the people of Gaza; they eat the same food as their captors. The famine—caused by the occupation regime—affects all areas of the Strip, and inevitably its effects are reflected upon the ‘Israeli’ captives, just as they are reflected upon their captors, their families, and the overwhelming majority of Gaza’s population.

In light of past prisoner exchange deals and testimonies from released detainees and their families, it is evident that Israeli prisoners returned in good health and psychological condition, having received the highest levels of care and attention—rooted in our values and the principles of our noble religion. In contrast, our prisoners released from the occupation’s prisons have returned in deteriorated health, having lost significant weight, as visibly evident in their appearance, and as they themselves attested to the harsh treatment and poor food provided to them.

Hence, we hereby reiterate the statement of the spokesperson of the Al-Qassam Brigades, confirming the willingness to “cooperate positively and respond to any request from the Red Cross to deliver food and medicine to the prisoners of the enemy” in the Gaza Strip, provided that “the acceptance of such a request be conditional upon the opening of humanitarian corridors in a normal and continuous manner to allow the passage of food and medicine to all our people.” We reaffirm his emphasis that “the Al-Qassam Brigades do not deliberately starve the prisoners; they eat from the same provisions as our fighters and the rest of our people. They will not receive any special privileges amid this crime of starvation and blockade.” This is in full accordance with international humanitarian law, particularly Article 23 of the Draft Articles on Responsibility of States, which states that if the blockade and denial of basic necessities by the occupying power constitute a force majeure that prevents the provision of essential needs, the detaining party shall not be held responsible for the resulting shortcomings, unless it preserves the dignity and legal status of the prisoners.