PALESTINE’S LEGAL SCENE – Issue. 308

Your weekly survey of the most important publications and activities related to Palestine and law, from local and international sources

23-29 Nov. 2025

Issued every Sunday by Law for Palestine

Prepared by: Nour Kharouf, Murad Abu Murad, and Arwa Abdel Moniam

Translation: Ferdous Abdul Hamid and Mai Shaheen

Editing: Widad Hussein

This weekly report reviews the legal dynamics of the Palestine question, and everything related to international law and Palestine. The report includes an account of the most important publications, activities and conferences related to Palestine at the local, regional, international levels. The report further covers decisions, decrees, and judicial orders affecting the Palestinian cause, whether made at the official, academic or public levels. The report aims to be a reference for monitoring, documenting and archiving the latest human rights developments related to Palestine, and to present them to individuals, researchers, study centers, and official, academic and legal institutions concerned.

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Judicial decrees, decisions, positions, and orders issued by official Palestinian bodies:

• The Jerusalem Governorate announced that the Israeli occupation army has confiscated approximately 77,608 dunams of land belonging to the town of Al-Issawiya and its surrounding areas, and issued an additional order to remove trees around the Al-Eizariya cemetery. The Governorate considered this a dangerous escalation in annexation and Judaization policies targeting the Governorate, and an implementation of the E1 plan and the Greater Jerusalem plan. It explained that the occupation uses military orders under the pretext of “military needs” to seize Palestinian lands and later convert them to serve settlement projects. (November 24, 2025)
• Head of the Refugee Affairs Department, Ahmad Abu Huli, called on the Swedish government to reconsider its decision to halt funding for UNRWA, warning that the agency’s collapse would lead to “serious humanitarian and security repercussions.” ( November 26, 2025).
• The Palestinian National Council condemned the approval by the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Security Committee of a bill that would allow settlers to purchase land directly in the West Bank, describing it as a legislative assault aimed at transforming settler control into an organized property system and paving the way for de facto annexation of large areas. (November 26, 2025)
• The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly condemned the execution of two Palestinian youths by the Israeli army near Jenin refugee camp, describing the incident as a full-fledged war crime. The Ministry asserted that the crime is part of a systematic Israeli policy of extrajudicial killings occurring in parallel with settler attacks and a legislative process within the Knesset that seeks to legitimize such violations. (November 27, 2025)
• The Ministry of Women’s Affairs issued its national report entitled: Gender-Based Violence Against Palestinian Women and Girls Amid the Genocidal War in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, Including Jerusalem. (November 27, 2025)
• The Palestinian National Council affirmed that the Israeli occupation authorities’ decision to confiscate 1,800 dunams of land from the historic town of Sebastia in the northern West Bank constitutes a direct assault on the historical and legal rights of its residents. The Council also condemned the issuance of demolition orders for 24 residential buildings in the Jenin refugee camp. (November 27, 2025)
• The official spokesperson for the Palestinian Presidency, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, said that Israel’s ongoing war against the Palestinian people will not bring security or stability to anyone, nor will it grant legitimacy to any measure taken by the occupying authorities. (November 28, 2025)
• The Palestinian National Council and the Refugee Affairs Department of the Palestine Liberation Organization condemned the decision of the Israeli occupation army to issue military orders to demolish 24 residential buildings in the Jenin refugee camp, which house hundreds of families. They described the decision as part of a systematic policy of demolition, ethnic cleansing, and forced displacement. (November 28, 2025)
• On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, Commission for Detainees and Dx-detainees Affairs, the General Union of Palestinian Women, and the General Federation of Palestine Trade Unions called for upholding the rights of the Palestinian people, holding the occupation accountable for its crimes, and ending the international exception granted to those crimes. (November 29, 2025)

Judicial decrees, decisions, positions, and orders issued by official Israeli bodies

• The Israeli Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee approved, in its first reading, a bill on the Elimination of Discrimination in Real Estate Purchases in Judea and Samaria—the West Bank—of 2023, which stipulates the repeal of the 1953 Jordanian law that  restricts the sale and leasing of land to foreigners (settlers). (November 25, 2025).

Judicial decrees, decisions, positions, and orders issued by Arab, European, and international bodies

• UN experts warned that Israel’s continued violations of the ceasefire in Gaza threaten the fragile truce, noting that since 11 October Israel has committed 393 violations resulting in the killing of 339 Palestinians, including more than 70 children, and the injury of 871 others. They stressed that the attacks constitute a ‘blatant violation’ of the ceasefire agreement. (November 24, 2025)
• The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) stated that the Palestinian economy witnessed in 2024 its worst decline in decades due to widespread destruction of vital infrastructure, affecting factories, businesses, hospitals, schools, universities, residential buildings, banks, and energy, water, communications, and agricultural networks. UNCTAD called for a permanent ceasefire and the launch of a recovery process that prioritizes basic healthcare, clean water, and the reconstruction of essential infrastructure. (November 25, 2025)
• UNRWA stated that the return of rain to Gaza has worsened the already harsh living conditions, as winter, destruction, and displacement increase the risk of disease outbreaks. The agency noted that thousands of people are enduring severe cold and in deteriorating sanitary conditions without adequate shelter, stressing that this suffering can be prevented through the unimpeded flow of humanitarian aid. (November 25, 2025)
• UN Secretary-General António Guterres stated that the ceasefire agreement in Gaza and the Security Council’s adoption of a resolution on Gaza constitute an important step, stressing the need to translate the diplomatic momentum into concrete and urgent progress on the ground. (November 25, 2025)
• UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese stated that Israel’s repeated violations in Gaza, numbering in the hundreds, cannot be considered a ceasefire. She added that surviving Palestinians are facing hunger and living in water-soaked tents, noting that what is happening exposes diplomatic hypocrisy and international complicity in the ongoing suffering. (November 25, 2025)
• The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported that Israeli strikes continue to be recorded near or east of what is known as the “yellow line” in Gaza despite the ceasefire, while access to the sea remains prohibited. Building demolitions also persist in areas where Israeli forces remain stationed (covering more than 50% of the Strip), alongside severe restrictions on humanitarian aid, infrastructure, and agricultural land. In contrast, UNRWA announced the operation of 349 temporary learning spaces across 64 shelters. ( November 25, 2025).
• UNRWA stated that the West Bank is experiencing its worst humanitarian crisis in decades, with more than 12,000 Palestinian children forcibly displaced and 47 children killed since the beginning of the year. The Director of UNRWA Affairs in the West Bank reported that the camps of Jenin, Tulkarm, and Nur Shams have been completely emptied of their residents, leaving around 32,000 people in a state of forced displacement. He affirmed that the systematic destruction violates the basic principles of international law and serves only to tighten Israeli control. ( November 25/26, 2025).
• UN Women affirmed that the women of Gaza are engaged in a daily struggle to keep their families alive amid ongoing violence and shortages of essential supplies, stressing that “the world cannot look away.” Sofia Calltorp, UN Women’s Chief of Humanitarian Action, said after her visit to the enclave that the reality on the ground is far harsher than what is seen on screens, noting that women are living in tents and among the rubble of their homes despite the ceasefire, and that the killings continue. (November 25, 2025)
• The UN Human Rights Office said that Israel must immediately release Palestinian activist Ayman Ghrayeb and all Palestinians who are arbitrarily detained. It explained that Ghrayeb was abducted by settlers on 17 November while documenting their attacks in the West Bank, before being detained by Israeli security forces without any formal charge. The Office pointed to the escalating detention of Palestinian and foreign activists as settlers’ violence intensifies, stressing that the number of Palestinians held in administrative detention reached 3,368 as of November 2025, a practice described as arbitrary. (November 26, 2025)
• UN relief agencies said that more than two million Palestinians are crammed into less than half of the Gaza Strip, while most displaced people lack adequate shelter materials amid widespread destruction in residential areas. The United Nations stressed that relief efforts continue to face the systematic denial of essential items and restrictions on the work of aid organizations. (November 26, 2025)
• France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom condemned in a joint statement the massive increase in settler violence against Palestinian civilians in the West Bank, warning that such destabilising activity risks undermining the 20 Point Plan for Gaza and broader peace efforts. The four countries called on Israel to abide by its obligations under international law, protect Palestinians, and hold perpetrators accountable. They also reiterated their opposition to any form of annexation and to settlement expansion policies. (November 27, 2025)
• The UN Human Rights Office expressed its deep dismay at the “brazen killing” carried out by Israeli border police against two Palestinian men in Jenin in the occupied West Bank, describing the incident as an “apparent summary execution.” The Office’s spokesperson said that statements by a senior Israeli official seeking to absolve security forces of responsibility raise serious concerns about the credibility of any future review or investigation that is not fully independent. (November 28, 2025)
• Belgian Deputy Prime Minister Maxime Prévot condemned the violence perpetrated by Israeli settlers against Palestinian civilians in the West Bank, affirming his commitment to ensuring the implementation of the measures adopted by the Belgian government. ( November 28, 2025).
• The Spanish Foreign Minister called for the implementation of the two-state solution in his address at the 10th Regional Forum of the Union for the Mediterranean, stressing that a just and durable peace in the Middle East can only be achieved through the implementation of this (November 28, 2025)
• On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, the Libyan Presidential Council, the Lebanese-Palestinian Dialogue Committee, the Tunisian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Arab Parliament, and South Africa reaffirmed their firm and unwavering support for the Palestinian people’s right to freedom and the establishment of an independent and sovereign state with Jerusalem as its capital. (November 29, 2025)

Publications of human rights NGOs

• The Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies stated that the UN Security Council’s resolution endorsing a comprehensive U.S.-sponsored plan to end the conflict in Gaza failed to address the root causes and the ongoing structural constraints that have undermined peace in Palestine for more than 70 years, entrenching an imperial policy that restricts the Palestinian right to self-determination. (November 24, 2025)
• B’Tselem reported that since the start of the ‘ceasefire’ on 10 October 2025, Israel has killed at least 345 Palestinians in Gaza. The World Food Programme explained that it has been able to deliver only two-thirds of the planned aid, reaching about 500,000 people, roughly 30% of its target, due to Israeli bureaucratic restrictions and the refusal to open the crossings. Since the beginning of the truce, Israel has demolished around 1,500 buildings in the Strip. (November 25, 2025)
• Jewish Voice for Peace stated that the massacre being carried out by the Israeli army in Gaza has not stopped, but is instead escalating, noting that the Israeli government committed around 500 violations of the truce over 44 days. (November 25, 2025)
• Al-Haq published an article on the report “The Private Actors Behind the Economy of Occupation and Genocide”. It said that the report, released by the “Don’t Buy into Occupation” coalition, revealed the extensive financial ties between European financial institutions and companies involved in Israel’s illegal settlement enterprise in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem. (November 25, 2025)
• As the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence begin, the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights stressed that women in the Gaza Strip face a harsh reality of violence amid the absence of effective international and institutional protection. It noted that the effects of genocide continue long after the end of the war, leaving deep physical and psychological scars. (November 25, 2025)
• The Israel Medical Association sent an official letter to the Knesset National Security Committee, emphasizing that the core ethical duty of physicians is to save lives, provide care, and alleviate suffering—not to participate in killing. The Association stated unequivocally that physicians are prohibited from assessing “competency for execution,” injecting substances, monitoring vital signs during an execution, or offering any “technical” or “neutral” advice in any form. It warned that politicizing medicine to justify punishment further deepens the dehumanization of Palestinians. (November 25, 2025)
• Israeli human rights organizations, including HaMoked, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, and the Public Committee Against Torture, filed a petition with the High Court calling for the resumption of family visits for Palestinian security prisoners after they were banned at the start of the Gaza war. The organizations stated that the ban constitutes discrimination and collective punishment, noting that Palestinians have been completely cut off from contact with their families since October 7, 2023. (November 25, 2025)
• Amnesty International’s Secretary-General, Agnès Callamard, stated that the ceasefire in Gaza creates a “dangerous illusion” of life returning to normal, affirming that what is taking place still constitutes genocide against the Palestinians. ( November 26, 2025)
• Palestinian human rights organizations urged the United Nations to urgently intervene to halt an Israeli draft law imposing the death penalty on Palestinian detainees, warning that it legitimizes “systematic, state-sanctioned killing” and reinforces the system of apartheid and genocidal violence. (November 26, 2025).
• Physicians for Human Rights – Israel published a report documenting the deaths of at least 94 Palestinians in Israeli custody between October 2023 and August 2025. The report confirmed that these deaths occurred within the framework of a policy of enforced disappearance and systematic killing pursued by Israel against Palestinian prisoners. It noted that the actual number of deaths may be significantly higher than documented, particularly among detainees from Gaza. (November 2025)

Research and academic studies (in Arabic and English):

• The journal Revista Crítica de Ciências Sociais published a research paper by researcher Tor Krever titled: “Palestine and the Limits of International Law” (2025).
• The Journal of Law at Kuwait University, Published a research paper by Yasser Amouri and Mai Barakt entitled: “The Right of the Palestinian People to Self-Determination: The Indication of the Concept and Its Change” (2025).
• The journal Political Geography published a research paper by Yaniv Reingewertz titled: “Beyond apartheid and genocide: A broader framework for understanding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.” (2025)

Opinion Pieces and features

• CounterPunch published an article by Lama Khoury titled: ‘Resolution 2803: How the UN Security Council Legitimized Palestinian Children’s Death-Worlds?’ (November 24, 2025)
• PassBlue published an opinion article by Mona Ali Khalil titled: ‘How Israel Is Still Defying the World Court and the UN’ (November 25, 2025)
• Arab News published an opinion article by Dawood Kuttab titled: ‘Why Do Ceasefires Not Stop the Israeli Killing Machine?’ (November 26, 2025)
• Arab News published an opinion article by Osama Al-Sharif entitled: “A Tale of Two the ‘Virtual’ Ceasefire ”. ( November 26, 2025)
• EJIL:TALK! published an article by Ardi Imseis entitled: “On Palestine and the Death of the West’s International Legal Order”. ( November 26, 2025)
• CounterPunch published an opinion piece by Ramzy Baroud entitled: “The New Kill Zone: Gaza’s Borders after the ‘Ceasefire.’”(November 26, 2025)
• Arab News published an opinion piece by Abdellatif El-Menawy entitled: “Gaza plan plants the seed of a fragile political transition.” (November 28, 2025
• J Street published an opinion piece by Len Rubenstein titled: “The Crisis of Accountability Crisis for Assaults on Palestinians.” (November 25, 2025)
• Haaretz published an opinion piece by Hanin Majdali entitled: “Trauma under the olive tree.” (November 28, 2025)
• Truthout published an opinion piece by Athar Ihab Abu Samra entitled: “For Some in Gaza, International Scholarships Are Lifelines. For Others, Exile.” (November 28, 2025)
• CANARY published an opinion piece by Sam Walton entitled: “The ban on Palestine Action is inherently Islamophobic.” (November 25, 2025)

Legal Achievements/Impacts for Palestine

• The European Commission registered a citizens’ initiative calling for the suspension of the EU–Israel Association Agreement in response to the Israel’s human rights violations. (November 25,2025).
• The United Nations Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People held a special meeting at UN Headquarters in New York on the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. ( November 25,2025).