PALESTINE’S LEGAL SCENE – Issue. 302

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

12 – 18 October. 2025

Issued every Sunday by Law for Palestine

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

Translation: : Mai Shaheen and Maisaa Abdelqader

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 Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) welcomed the adoption of a resolution on the State of Palestine by the Executive Board of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), emphasizing that all Israeli actions in Jerusalem are legally invalid under international law. The Ministry called for the resolution’s immediate implementation through the dispatch of a UNESCO exploratory and reactive monitoring mission to Jerusalem, to assess what it described as deliberate acts of sabotage by Israel. (October 14, 2025)

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

• Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said he had instructed the Israeli army to prepare to destroy all of Hamas’s tunnels in Gaza, both directly by the Israeli army and through the international mechanism to be established under U.S. leadership and supervision. (October 12, 2025)
• The Israeli government announced that it would not reopen the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt or transfer the full amount of humanitarian aid to the Strip, in protest of what it described as Hamas’s failure to return the bodies of all slain hostages still held in Gaza. (October 14, 2025)
• Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz explained that the army is enforcing a clear policy of vigilance along the Yellow Line, which covers more than 50% of Gaza’s territory, emphasizing that any violations will be met with an immediate response. (October 15, 2025)

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

• The Presidents of the United States of America, the Arab Republic of Egypt, the Republic of Türkiye, and the Emir of the State of Qatar signed the Trump Declaration for Enduring Peace and Prosperity, which, according to the White House, welcomed the truly historic commitment and implementation by all parties to the Trump Peace Agreement to end the war in Gaza and bring lasting peace to the Middle East, affirming support for peace, security, stability, and opportunity for all peoples of the region, including both Palestinians and Israelis. (October 13, 2025)
• British MP Hamish Falconer, Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, said that rebuilding Gaza will be one of the most challenging operations in modern times, stressing the need to seize the current ceasefire opportunity. (October 13, 2025)
• The Director-General of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, stated that WHO teams have expanded their operations in Gaza since the ceasefire took effect. He said the WHO has brought in eight trucks of medical supplies, including insulin, laboratory supplies, and essential medicines. (October 13, 2025)
• The United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher, announced the allocation of an additional $11 million from the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) directed toward providing food, water, shelter, and health services in Gaza, as well as supporting the continued operation of essential infrastructure in the region. However, Fletcher warned of a funding shortfall. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) stated that the expansion of aid efforts in Gaza is showing tangible progress. (October 13, 2025)
• The President of Colombia stated that the 20,000 children killed in Gaza constitute a crime against humanity and that the perpetrators must be brought to trial; otherwise, humanity risks descending into barbarism. He emphasised that Palestinian justice must hold war criminals accountable. (October 13, 2025)
• The Secretary-General of the United Nations welcomed the continued implementation of the ceasefire in Gaza, including the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian detainees. The Secretary called on all parties to strengthen the ceasefire and transform it into lasting peace, urging regional and international actors to seize this moment of respite to restart a credible political process that can deliver the outcome of two independent, sovereign, democratic States; Israel and Palestine. (October 13, 2025)
• Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated that the situation in Gaza remains tragic due to the ongoing blockade and widespread destruction caused by Israeli military operations. He emphasized the urgent need to resume political negotiations between Palestinians and Israelis based on United Nations resolutions and the two-state solution principle. Lavrov also affirmed that Russia rejects unilateral measures that hinder the realization of this solution, including the expansion of settlements and the Judaization of Jerusalem. (October 13, 2025)
• Irish Foreign Minister Simon Harris announced that his government will provide an additional €6 million in humanitarian aid to support the people of Gaza, noting that the funding will be channeled through Ireland’s UN partners. (October 13, 2025)
• The Jordanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly condemned the storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque by Israel’s extremist Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir, and the continued incursions by extremists under the protection of Israeli police, describing the act as a blatant violation of the existing legal and historical status quo. (October 14, 2025)
• Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories, said that calling what is described as “peace” is both an insult and a distraction, stressing that Israel must face justice, sanctions, divestment, and boycott until the occupation, apartheid, and genocide end, and all crimes are accounted for. (October 14, 2025)
• UNRWA spokesperson Adnan Abu Hasna stated that the agency has been unable to bring any humanitarian supplies into Gaza despite several days having passed since the ceasefire took effect, stressing that excluding UNRWA from relief efforts would mean the collapse of the humanitarian operation. He explained that Israel continues to prevent the entry of around six thousand trucks loaded with food supplies sufficient for Gaza’s people for three months, in addition to hundreds of thousands of blankets, tents, clothes, and essential medicines needed to address the deteriorating situation. He pointed out that some of the supplies are at risk of spoilage after eight months of waiting since the last delivery on March 2, 2025. (October 15, 2025)
• The United States denied that Hamas had violated the ceasefire agreement, stating that a dragged-out process to return the bodies of hostages held in Gaza was expected, given the difficult conditions on the ground. Senior advisers to President Donald Trump said that Washington is working with Israel to establish a safe zone within areas controlled by Israeli forces, indicating that the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip would be limited to “Hamas -freeareas”. (October 15, 2025)
• UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Tom Fletcher, stated that the world is witnessing a moment of great but precarious hope following the Sharm El-Sheikh summit, which endorsed the peace initiative launched by the U.S. President. He explained that humanitarian aid has begun reaching Gaza after months of obstacles and called on Israel to allow thousands of aid trucks to enter weekly, stressing that withholding aid from civilians is not a bargaining chip but a legal obligation. (October 15, 2025)
• South African President Cyril Ramaphosa stated that the recent peace agreement concerning the Gaza Strip, while welcomed, would not alter the course of the legal case his country has filed against Israel at the International Court of Justice. He affirmed that the legal proceedings are ongoing.(October 15, 2025)
• UNRWA stated that the people across the Gaza Strip are suffering from starvation and widespread malnutrition in a man-made crisis. While some food aid is entering, it is nowhere near enough to meet the massive needs. UNRWA’s humanitarian aid, including three months’ worth of food supplies, is ready in Jordan and Egypt for delivery. On World Food Day, UNRWA called for the entry of aid at scale and without restrictions, stressing the need to enable it to carry out its relief mission in Gaza. (October 16, 2025)
• The United Nations stressed the urgent need for all crossings to be opened to enable a large-scale increase in humanitarian aid. It noted that supplies from Egypt still have to take a long detour to the Kerem Shalom crossing for Israeli inspection, pending the reopening of the Rafah crossing to aid. (October 16, 2025)
• The President of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, announced that his country would honor Palestinian physician Hussam Abu Safia. He also emphasized that Colombia would not resume full diplomatic relations with Israel until it complies with existing agreements. (October 16, 2025)
• The Supreme Court in Ireland has rejected the decision by the Irish police not to investigate the legality of Airbnb’s activities within Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, ruling that the claim of lacking jurisdiction is legally unjustified. The court ordered the police to reconsider the case filed by the Irish-Palestinian charity organization Sadaka, which called for an investigation into potential violations of Irish law. (October 16, 2025)
• UNRWA affirmed that the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza has become a matter of political will, calling for permission to operate in order to alleviate the suffering of civilians. (October 17, 2025)
• UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk called on all relevant parties to ensure that human rights are central to transforming the ceasefire in Gaza into a lasting peace. He emphasized that achieving peace requires accountability for serious violations, as well as guaranteeing the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and participation in shaping their future. (October 17, 2025)
• France announced that it is working together with the United Kingdom and in coordination with the United States to draft a Security Council resolution in the coming days to establish an international force in Gaza, with the aim of stabilizing the security situation following the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. (October 17, 2025)
• The United Nations Human Rights Office for the Occupied Palestinian Territory confirmed the number of Palestinians killed in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since October 7, 2023, has reached 1,001. The victims include 206 children, 7 girls, 20 women, and 7 persons with disabilities. The report criticized the lack of effective investigations into these violations, stressing that the impunity of Israeli forces and settlers indicates the use of killing as a tool to control and oppress Palestinians. (October 17, 2025)

Publications of human rights NGOs:

• Eyal Weizman, Director of Forensic Architecture, said that an aerial image from the 1960s shows that the yellow line of Israel’s redeployment in Gaza roughly matches the border of the area’s coastal sand dunes, leaving Gaza without the vast majority of its agricultural areas on the fertile soils in the east. (October 11, 2025)
• Drop Site revealed that Israeli soldiers deliberately set fire to homes and civilian infrastructure in Gaza City, including the Sheikh Ajlin sewage treatment plant, following the ceasefire announcement. The Israeli soldiers describe the arson as final touches. The destruction has pushed Gaza’s wastewater system back to point zero, creating severe environmental and public health risks. (October 12, 2025)
• Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) said that the announcement of the first phase of the ceasefire in Gaza offered residents a moment of relief but did not mark the end of the humanitarian crisis. The organization stressed that respecting and sustaining the ceasefire is essential to provide healthcare and rebuild the devastated health system. It also emphasized the urgent need to expand the delivery of medical and food aid, water, fuel, and shelter to all areas of the Strip, calling on Israel to lift restrictions, allow medical evacuations for patients, and reinstate the UN-led humanitarian coordination mechanism. (October 12, 2025)
• The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) urged the dignified management of the deceased as it continues its operations to facilitate the transfer of human remains as part of the ceasefire agreement. (October 14, 2025)
• The 7amleh Center published a position paper titled “A War Without Bullets: How Disinformation Reshapes the Reality of Palestinian Youth on the Backdrop of a Genocide,” which revealed the role of misinformation as a central tool in Israel’s war on Gaza. (October 15, 2025)
• Human Rights Watch reported that the October ceasefire in Gaza has brought some desperately needed relief after two years of atrocities, but much more needs to be done. The organization called on Israel to fully lift its unlawful blockade and facilitate rebuilding. It also called on the international community to support accountability for grave crimes committed and act to stop Israel’s ongoing crimes of apartheid against Palestinians. (October 15, 2025)
• The Palestinian Prisoners’ Club emphasized that the issue of the bodies of martyrs recovered by the Israeli occupation highlights one of the significant military actions taken by the occupation following the war of Genocide in Gaza. Initial medical examinations of 120 bodies, handed over by the occupation, revealed that many of the martyrs had been executed after their detention. Additionally, some bodies showed signs of torture, burning, and eye staining, indicating further abuse. This evidence is now being added to the ongoing documentation of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed against the martyrs. (October 16, 2025)
• The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) condemned the raid by Israeli army and intelligence forces on the offices of the Palestinian General Federation of Trade Unions in the city of Nablus, in the occupied West Bank. The ITUC stated that this constitutes a serious violation of international law and of the fundamental right to freedom of trade union organization.(October 16, 2025)
• Eighty civil society and human rights organizations expressed deep concern over the U.S. government’s decision to impose sanctions on three Palestinian human rights organizations – Al-Haq, Al-Mezan, and the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights – due to their cooperation with the International Criminal Court in investigating Israeli war crimes in Gaza. The organizations called on the United States to immediately withdraw these sanctions. (October 16, 2025)
• Badil Center has published a new position paper titled “The Decisive Plan: The Israeli Regime’s Blueprint for Colonial Expansion and Palestinian Subjugation.” The paper reveals that the “Smotrich Decisive Plan,” proposed in 2017, has become the practical strategy of the Israeli regime to impose “full sovereignty” over the West Bank and to consolidate colonial domination over all of Mandatory Palestine. The paper also criticizes the enabling role of Western countries, which have provided Israel with political, military, and financial support. (October 17, 2025)
• The Human Rights and Democracy Media Center “SHAMS” affirmed that eradicating poverty in Palestine begins with ending the Israeli occupation and its colonial system. The center emphasized that the “economic colonialism” imposed by the occupation – through the Paris Protocol and control over crossings and taxes – prevents the development of an independent Palestinian economy. (October 17, 2025)

Research and academic studies (in Arabic and English):

• The ASEAN Conference of Law Schools 2025 published a research paper by researcher Edi Ribut Harwanto titled: “Settlement of the Palestine and Israel problem according to international criminal law and human rights”. (2025)
• Jurnal Ilmiah Multidisiplin Indonesia published a research paper by Muhamad Fadli et al. titled: “Problems of Enforcing International Humanitarian Law in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict”. (2025)
• Curriculum Inquiry published a research paper by Chandni Desai titled: “Scholasticide and resilience: The Gaza Genocide and the struggle for Palestinian higher education”. (2025)

Opinion Pieces and features:

• ABC published an opinion piece by Victor Kattan titled:“The hidden history of British war crimes in Palestine — and the campaign for an apology”. (October 2025)
• The Guardian published an opinion piece by Nesrine Malik titled: “While the perpetrators of Gaza’s genocide pose as its saviours, survivors return home – to a wasteland”. (October 13, 2025)
• Mondoweiss published an opinion piece by Mitchell Plitnick titled:“Trump ignores Palestinians in Knesset speech intended as a victory lap for the Gaza war”. (October 13, 2025)
• The Arab News published an op-ed by Osama Al-Sharif titled: “Trump has his day but elephant in the room remains”.(October 14, 2025)
• The Guardian published an op-ed by Hussein Agha and Robert Malley titled: “Life in Gaza may go from utter hell to mere nightmare. What happens now?”.(October 14,2025)
• The Arab News published an op-ed by Hani Hazaimeh titled: “The battle for Gaza’s future has only just begun”. (October 15, 2025)
• The New Arab published an opinion piece by Toufic Haddad titled: “Accountability for the Gaza Genocide? Deny at Your Peril”.(October 15, 2025)
• The Guardian published an analytical article by Jason Burke titled: “Challenges remain for aid distribution in Gaza City despite ceasefire with Israel”. (October 15,2025)
• Rai al-Youm published an article by Bassam Abu Sharif titled: “The Sharm El-Sheikh Summit: A Rescue Plan for Israel and a Deliberate Attempt to Break Its Global Isolation”. (October 15, 2025)
• The New York Times published an opinion article by M. Gessen titled: “Francesca Albanese: Her Optimism Has Won Her Some of the Most Powerful Enemies in the World”. (October 16, 2025)
• Mondoweiss published an article by William Johnson titled: “As Solidarity with Palestine Grows, Thousands of Film Workers Pledge to End Complicity with Genocide”. (October 16, 2025)
• Mondoweiss published an article by Michael Arria titled: “As support for Israel drops, the mainstream media is becoming even more Zionist”. (October 17, 2025)
• Mondoweiss published an article by Qassam Muaddititled: “The Palestinian Authority may become a casualty of the Trump plan and the new Western consensus”. (October 17, 2025)
• Middle East Monitor published an opinion piece by Azmat Ali titled: “War paused, accountability denied: Gaza’s struggle for sovereignty”. (October 18, 2025)
• Al Jazeera published an opinion article by Mohamad Alqeeq titled: “In the occupied West Bank, the war continues”. (October 18, 2025)

Legal Achievements/Impacts for Palestine:

• The platform Declassified UK announced that activist Huda Ammori has secured the right to appeal the decision to ban the group Palestine Action, after the UK Court of Appeal rejected an attempt by the Home Office to challenge this ruling. The Home Office had argued that the appeal should be brought before the Proscribed Organisations Appeal Commission, but the court affirmed that the High Court must be allowed to issue a ruling that can serve as a precedent in criminal cases related to supporting the movement. (October 17, 2025)

Upcoming human rights opportunities and events:

• Visualizing Palestine announced that it will hold an event titled “Unerasable Narratives: Research and Design during Genocide” in New York on Wednesday, October 29, at 6:30 p.m. The event will feature a conversation with writer and illustrator Mona Chalabi and researcher and author Tareq Baconi, focusing on the role of research and design in shifting the narrative on Palestine amidst a rapidly evolving information landscape.