Palestine weekly wrap: Under cover of ceasefire, Israel increases grip

Israel has officially agreed to ceasefires successful Gaza, Lebanon, and Iran. But that has not meant immoderate de-escalation, arsenic Israeli forces and settlers property further into Palestinian-administered areas of the occupied West Bank, deeper into civilian abstraction successful Gaza, and much aggressively into the bosom of occupied East Jerusalem.

The pattern, documented crossed aggregate fronts this week – including a surge of strikes successful Lebanon contempt the announced hold of the ceasefire determination – suggests that ceasefires person functioned little arsenic existent pauses successful hostilities than arsenic screen for accelerated fact-making connected the ground. It was against this backdrop that Palestinians successful the West Bank and, for the archetypal clip since 2006, successful portion of Gaza, went to the polls connected Saturday successful municipal elections – contempt galore Palestinians doubting that these votes would beryllium capable to bring astir change.

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Gaza: Police targeted, children killed, elections held successful rubble

In Gaza, the week brought immoderate of the heaviest strikes connected civilian and constabulary infrastructure since the October ceasefire. Forty Palestinians were killed from April 20 to April 27, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health.

They included 3 constabulary officers killed successful a drone onslaught successful Khan Younis connected April 21, 5 radical – including 3 children – slain successful an aerial onslaught connected the courtyard of a mosque successful Beit Lahiya connected April 22, and 8 radical killed successful an onslaught connected a constabulary conveyance successful Khan Younis on April 24. A abstracted onslaught successful Gaza City besides killed 2 constabulary officers connected the aforesaid day.

On Saturday, Islam Karsou, a pistillate large with twins, and her 2 young children were killed successful artillery shelling adjacent Kamal Adwan Hospital. On Monday, 15-year-old Ayham al-Omari was killed by Israeli forces successful Beit Lahiya, according to Telegram reports.

The Popular Committees successful Gaza condemned “the repeated targeting of the Palestinian police” arsenic “a nonstop onslaught connected citizens’ information and safety”. Critics enactment the run risks dismantling the precise governance structures the Board of Peace’s model requires to relation earlier reconstruction tin begin.

As of April 27, since the October 11 ceasefire, 817 Palestinians successful Gaza person been killed and much than 2,200 injured, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health. Since October 7, 2023, the cumulative toll stands astatine 72,593.

Small-scale elections took spot successful Gaza – specifically successful Deir el-Balah – for the archetypal clip since 2006, successful municipal elections connected Saturday. In Deir el-Balah, turnout was 23 percent, with the committee attributing the debased fig to an outdated civilian registry reflecting the standard of displacement and death, and with a Palestinian colonisation whose attraction remains focused little connected municipal medication than connected survival.

Since the Zikim crossing was reopened 2 weeks ago, the United Nations has recorded a measurable summation successful assistance entering Gaza, though the amounts are inactive inadequate considering the precocious request successful the decimated Gaza Strip.

Settler unit crossed the West Bank

On April 21 successful al-Mughayyir, eastbound of Ramallah, a shooter successful subject fatigues opened occurrence towards a school, sidesplitting 2 people, including a teenager, according to the Palestine Red Crescent Society. Israeli forces closed the village’s entrances and attacked mourners astatine the funeral, according to the Palestinian authorities quality bureau Wafa.

Also connected April 21, a conveyance from the information item of far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir struck and killed a 16-year-old lad adjacent Hebron. On April 23, 15-year-old Youssef Ishtayeh was changeable dormant by Israeli forces successful Nablus on his mode location from school. The adjacent day, 25-year-old Oudeh Awawdeh died of wounds from a settler onslaught connected Deir Dibwan, eastbound of Ramallah, aft which Israeli forces arrested astir 30 residents, videos showed.

This week, settler chat groups circulated calls to “cancel Oslo with your feet”, urging equipped members to participate Areas A and B – nether afloat oregon partial power of the Palestinian Authority according to the Oslo Accords – of the West Bank arsenic Israel celebrated its Independence Day. Attacks were subsequently reported by section activists successful aggregate places, including Masafer Yatta, Qusra, Rafat, Birzeit, and Jalud implicit aggregate days. Israeli forces besides sealed entrances and imposed curfews successful Madama, southbound of Nablus, and al-Ram, northbound of East Jerusalem. In Beit Imrin, settlers acceptable occurrence to 2 vehicles and attempted to pain a home, injuring 8 people, including an infant, according to Wafa.

The week besides saw settlers propulsion further into lands that person historically carried adjacent Israeli ineligible protections, specified arsenic lands owned by spiritual authorities. On April 20, settlers arrived astatine the assemblage of Hammamat al-Maleh successful the bluish Jordan Valley with bulldozers and demolished the community’s school, on with residential structures, afloat displacing the community’s past 3 remaining households, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

The schoolhouse had been co-funded by much than a twelve Western donor countries; Ireland said it would question compensation from Israel. The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem conducted a tract sojourn to the country this week to measure harm to church-owned lands. Lands owned by the Islamic Waqf besides saw settler attacks and vehicular thefts this week successful Awsaj.

OCHA’s latest study documented 925 question obstacles crossed the West Bank – the highest successful 20 years, and 43 percent supra the two-decade mean – with 9 Palestinian communities afloat displaced successful 2026 alone.

East Jerusalem evictions

In occupied East Jerusalem, demolitions successful Silwan’s al-Bustan neighbourhood person sharply accelerated.

Israeli NGO Ir Amim documented 17 homes demolished determination successful 2026 versus 13 successful each of 2025, informing that the municipality appears to beryllium targeting each 115 homes by October to marque mode for a parkland adjacent to the City of David site, tally by the settler organisation Elad.

More than 2,000 Palestinians hazard being displaced “in 1 of the largest waves of expulsions successful East Jerusalem since 1967″, Ir Amim warned. The Rajabi family successful Silwan’s Batn al-Hawa vicinity received last eviction notices for 7 apartments, to beryllium vacated by May 17, according to the Palestinian Authority’s Jerusalem Governorate.

In Sheikh Jarrah, Israeli authorities approved operation of an 11-storey ultra-Orthodox yeshiva other the section mosque, according to Wafa.

On the Israeli governmental front, erstwhile Prime Ministers Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid announced this week that they would unite their parties nether Bennett’s enactment up of expected October elections. The announcement signals that adjacent the conjugation astir apt to situation Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu volition beryllium led by a erstwhile settler question person who has ruled retired Arab parties from immoderate aboriginal coalition, leaving small daylight betwixt Israel’s large governmental blocs connected questions of concern and colony expansion.