
This newsletter informs about recent and upcoming activities of Civil Society Organizations working on the question of Palestine. The Committee and the Division for Palestinian Rights of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Secretariat provide the information ¡°as is¡± without warranty of any kind, and do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, or reliability of the information contained in the websites linked in the newsletter.
Middle East
- On 26 August, reported on a workshop examining the severe deterioration of Gaza¡¯s health sector. Participants highlighted the destruction of hospitals and health infrastructure, restrictions on humanitarian aid, shortages of medicine and fuel, and barriers to patient movement. Speakers warned that these conditions had created a deepening humanitarian and public health crisis affecting thousands of patients. Al Mezan emphasized the need for accountability and international action to address the collapse of healthcare services.
- On 24 August, reported that the Israeli authorities had advanced the E1 settlement project into the implementation phase by opening a tender for 1,234 housing units. The organization argued that the move would deepen settlement expansion, threaten the displacement of Palestinian communities, fragment the West Bank, and further isolate East Jerusalem. PCHR called on the international community to take binding measures to halt the project, ensure accountability, and prevent companies from participating in settlement activities.
- On 19 August, reported that Israel¡¯s Ministry of Housing had opened a tender for 1,234 housing units in the E1 area east of Jerusalem. The organization argued that the move was politically motivated and could create irreversible facts on the ground before national elections. Peace Now noted that legal challenges against the project were still pending and warned that construction in E1 would further separate East Jerusalem from the West Bank and undermine prospects for a two-state solution.
- On 18 August, announced that it had withdrawn a petition challenging Israeli laws targeting Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA after Supreme Court justices signalled support for the state¡¯s position. The petition had been filed on behalf of Palestinian refugee families and Gisha. Adalah stated that the Court had failed to address constitutional, human rights, and international law concerns and appeared unwilling to scrutinize the legislation. The organization preserved its legal arguments and reserved the right to return to court in the future.
- On 18 August, submitted a statement to the 63rd session of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Human Rights Council arguing that companies had continued to facilitate and profit from activities linked to Israeli policies in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. The statement called for expanding the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ database of businesses involved in settlement activities, identifying additional sectors such as arms and technology companies, and holding corporate actors accountable. Al-Haq urged states to sanction listed companies and ensure compliance with international law.
Africa, Asia and Europe?
- On 26 August, the for Palestine issued an appeal to EU leaders ahead of the informal Gymnich meeting in Dublin. The organization argued that the EU had failed to take meaningful punitive measures regarding Israeli actions in Gaza and the West Bank despite mounting humanitarian concerns. It called for the suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement, a freeze on preferential trade, and an end to military and economic cooperation, asserting that continued inaction risked enabling further violations of international law.
- On 20 August, the published a report assessing shelter conditions in Gaza nearly three years into the conflict. The report found that most of the population had experienced repeated displacement and continued to live in inadequate shelters, damaged homes, or overcrowded buildings. It estimated that more than 320,000 housing units had been damaged, affecting around 1.7 million people. The report highlighted severe shortages of shelter materials despite the ceasefire and classified living conditions ranging from crisis to catastrophic in many areas.
- On 20 August, reported that escalating violence, displacement, movement restrictions, and economic hardship in Hebron had increased both physical and mental health needs. MSF expanded its mobile clinic activities to address rising demand, particularly for mental health services linked to violence. The organization documented difficulties in accessing healthcare due to road closures, insecurity, shortages of medical staff and medicines, and operational restrictions. It called on Israeli authorities to ensure civilian protection and unobstructed access to healthcare and humanitarian assistance.
- On 19 August, reported that Israel had opened bids for 1,234 housing units in the E1 settlement project, part of a larger plan for 3,401 units. The organization argued that the project would fragment the West Bank, threaten Bedouin communities with displacement, and further entrench apartheid. HRW warned that companies participating in the tender risked complicity in serious violations of international law and urged governments to take measures to halt the project and restrict business involvement.
- On 14 August, described the difficult living conditions facing Palestinians in Gaza despite reduced hostilities. It reported that many families continued to experience displacement, inadequate shelter, limited access to clean water, sanitation challenges, and strained healthcare services. The ICRC highlighted its efforts to rehabilitate water infrastructure, improve sanitation systems, and support primary healthcare centres. It stressed that essential services remained insufficient and that daily life continued to be marked by insecurity and hardship.
- On 14 August, condemned the siege of several Palestinian families¡¯ homes in Qusra by Israeli settlers. The organization stated that the incident reflected a broader pattern of escalating settler violence and displacement across the West Bank. Amnesty reported that affected families had faced harassment, restricted access to food and water, and attacks on aid deliveries. It called on the international community to hold Israel accountable, end support for settlements, and strengthen protections for Palestinian communities at risk of displacement.
North America?
- On 24 August, expressed solidarity with the ¡°Jerusalem Voice for Justice¡± appeal and endorsed its calls for protecting civilians, expanding humanitarian access, ending violence and displacement, and safeguarding the rights of Palestinians, including Palestinian Christians. The appeal highlighted the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, deteriorating conditions in the West Bank, settlement expansion, restrictions on movement, and concerns about Christian emigration. It urged churches, governments, and international actors to take action to uphold human dignity, equality, and a just peace.
- On 19 August, outlined six actions supporters could take to assist Palestinians in Gaza. It encouraged advocacy with members of Congress, participation in public awareness campaigns, education through Palestinian perspectives, corporate accountability and divestment initiatives and financial support for humanitarian and advocacy work. The article argued that Gaza continued to face severe humanitarian challenges and emphasized grassroots mobilization and political engagement as key avenues for support.
- On 18 August, published a podcast discussion featuring Peter Beinart, Eli Clifton, and Ian Lustick about their book Israel¡¯s Lobby: America in the Grip of a Foreign Power. The discussion explored the influence of pro-Israel advocacy networks in U.S. politics, the methods they used to shape policy debates, whether their influence had limits, and how the subject could be discussed without resorting to conspiracy theories. The speakers also considered possible future trends in the lobby¡¯s political influence.
United Nations
- On 26 August, briefed the Security Council on the worsening situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. He reported continued Israeli strikes in Gaza, significant humanitarian challenges, severe restrictions on civilian access, and deteriorating conditions in the West Bank. He highlighted concerns over settlement expansion, including the E1 tender, the seizure of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA Kalandia Training Centre, and the Palestinian Authority¡¯s fiscal crisis. He called for implementation of existing agreements, restoration of essential services in Gaza, protection of civilians, and progress toward a two-state solution.
- On 25 August, condemned the Israeli authorities¡¯ entry into and seizure of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA Kalandia Training Centre in occupied East Jerusalem. He stated that the facility was protected under Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ privileges and immunities and argued that the action violated international legal obligations. He warned that the seizure could deprive hundreds of Palestine Refugee students of vocational education and jeopardize future access for many others. He urged Israel to withdraw from the facility and restore its inviolability without delay.
- On 25 August, reported that Israeli Security Forces had entered the Kalandia Training Centre with armoured vehicles and numerous security personnel before authorities announced that the premises had been seized. Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA condemned the action as an unauthorized intrusion into a Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ facility and emphasized the Centre¡¯s longstanding role in providing vocational education to Palestine Refugees. The agency called on the international community to protect Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ premises and ensure that its operations could continue without interference or intimidation.
- On 25 August, ¡¯s report A System in Crisis: Access to Healthcare in the Gaza Strip concluded that Gaza¡¯s healthcare system had suffered a systemic collapse after nearly three years of conflict. It documented damage to health facilities, shortages of medicines, fuel, medical equipment, and personnel, and major obstacles to humanitarian access. The report found that women, children, older persons, persons with disabilities, and patients with chronic illnesses faced heightened risks. It noted that Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA had continued providing services through mobile teams and temporary facilities but stressed that humanitarian actors could not replace a functioning healthcare system and called for sustained recovery efforts.
Document Type: NGO Action News
Document Sources: ADALAH - Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, Al Mezan Centre for Human Rights, Al-Haq, American Friends Service Committee, Amnesty International, Churches for Middle East Peace, Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP), Division for Palestinian Rights (DPR), European Coordination of Committee and Associations for Palestine, Foundation for Middle East Peace (FMEP), Human Rights Watch, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Medecins sans Frontieres, Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), Palestinian Centre for Human Rights, Peace Now, United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA), United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process (Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµSCO)
Subject: Gaza Strip, Human rights and international humanitarian law, NGOs/Civil Society, Settlements, Settler violence, Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA, West Bank
Publication Date: 27/08/2026
Document Sources: ADALAH - Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, Al Mezan Centre for Human Rights, Al-Haq, American Friends Service Committee, Amnesty International, Churches for Middle East Peace, Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP), Division for Palestinian Rights (DPR), European Coordination of Committee and Associations for Palestine, Foundation for Middle East Peace (FMEP), Human Rights Watch, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Medecins sans Frontieres, Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), Palestinian Centre for Human Rights, Peace Now, United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA), United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process (Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµSCO)
Subject: Gaza Strip, Human rights and international humanitarian law, NGOs/Civil Society, Settlements, Settler violence, Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA, West Bank
Publication Date: 27/08/2026