PALESTINE’S LEGAL SCENE – Issue. 324

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

 15 – 21 March 2026

Issued every Sunday by Law for Palestine

Prepared by: Nour Kharouf, Murad Abu Murad, and Ahmad Al Rjoub

Translation: Mohammed Janineh 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.

To view this Issue of Palestine’s Legal Scene, please click here (5 minutes read)

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

• The Palestinian National Council and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the heinous crime committed by Israeli occupation forces in the town of Tammun, south of Tubas, which resulted in the killing of a father, mother, and their two children. The Council stressed that this crime is a continuation of the policy of extrajudicial executions and the deliberate targeting of civilians, affirming that the horrific terrorist assaults on the Khirbet Humsa community in the northern Jordan Valley constitute a fully documented crime that amounts to war crimes and crimes against humanity. (March 15-16, 2026)

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

• UN Human Rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OHCHR OPT) condemned the killing of two Palestinian families by Israeli fire in Gaza and the West Bank, which left two fathers, two mothers – one of them pregnant with twins – and three children aged between 5 and 10 dead. This comes as settlers continue to terrorize Palestinian communities, resulting in the killing of a man in Qusra and a reported sexual assault against another in Khirbet Humsa. The Office stressed that these acts reflect a pattern of utter disregard for Palestinian lives. (March 15, 2026)
• The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) confirmed that people across the Occupied Palestinian Territory continue to face lethal force and other attacks that cause casualties, destroy property, and displace families, further deepening humanitarian needs. (March 16, 2026)
• The UN Human Rights Office reported that the Government of Israel has accelerated unlawful settlement expansion and the annexation of large parts of the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, forcibly displacing over 36,000 Palestinians amid increasing violence. The report also documented 42 settler attacks during the olive harvest season in October, resulting in the injury of 131 Palestinians, the highest number recorded in a single month since 2006, amid daily attacks and the closure of more land to Palestinian landowners and harvesters. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk called on Israel to immediately and completely cease and reverse the establishment and expansion of settlements, evacuation of all settlers, enable the return of displaced Palestinians, and stop all practices of land confiscation, forced evictions, and house demolitions. (March 17, 2026)
• Bristol Crown Court acquitted British activist Kwabena Devonish of charges of expressing support for a proscribed organization, after she said in November 2023 during a march in Cardiff that she was “sick of being told to condemn Hamas,” arguing that she was expressing a political opinion. (March 17, 2026)
• A report by the UN Human Rights Office warned that Israel’s settlement expansion is driving mass displacement of Palestinians across the occupied West Bank. The report documented an increase in incidents of settler violence resulting in casualties or property damage, as well as relentless harassment, intimidation, and the destruction of homes and farmland. (March 17, 2026)
• The Commissioner-General of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, sent a letter to the President of the UN General Assembly, Annalena Baerbock, warning that the agency’s continued operation may soon no longer be viable, with far-reaching consequences for Palestinian refugees. (March 17, 2026)
• UN experts warned of Israel’s accelerating campaign of ethnic cleansing and annexation in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, stressing the coordinated implementation of these policies by occupation forces and settlers, marked by the forced displacement of Palestinians and escalating violence terrorizing Palestinian communities. They noted that road closures are obstructing access to workplaces, schools, health services and aid, isolating communities even from ambulances, while settlers are being galvanized and supported, with reports indicating that arms and vehicles have been provided to these groups. The experts also warned that Israeli restrictions on humanitarian operations are causing serious and increasing harm, with women and girls bearing the brunt. (March 19, 2026)
• Germany is reported to be withdrawing its legal support for Israel in the genocide case concerning Gaza before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), in order to focus on its defense in a separate case filed by Nicaragua, which accuses Berlin of enabling Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza through arms sales. The German Deputy Foreign Minister stated that his country “will not intervene” on Israel’s behalf in the case brought by South Africa against Israel before The Hague Court in December 2023. (March 19, 2026)
• The European Council expressed deep concern over the deteriorating situation in Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, reaffirming its commitment to international law and to the two-state solution in accordance with United Nations resolutions. It also called for the full implementation of the ceasefire and all provisions of UN Security Council Resolution 2803, including the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, the disarmament of Hamas, and the deployment of a temporary international stabilization force. (March 19, 2026)
• The Supreme Court of Denmark ruled that Al-Haq and its partners do not have legal standing to challenge Denmark’s authorization of arms exports to Israel, including equipment related to the F-35 fighter jet program used in targeting civilians in Gaza. This decision effectively ends the lawsuit that had called for a legal review of these export licenses. (March 19, 2026)
• UN Secretary General António Guterres said that he is cooperating “actively” with President Donald Trump’s rival Board of Peace regarding the reconstruction of Gaza, but stressed that the board is not an effective crisis management tool and described it as “a personal project” of the U.S. president. (March 21, 2026)
• The diplomatic missions of Belgium, Canada, Denmark, the European Union, Ireland, Finland, France, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Switzerland in Ramallah and Jerusalem, in a joint statement, condemned the escalating acts of terrorism and settler violence perpetrated by Israeli forces against Palestinian communities. They stressed the need to put an end to this violence by settler militias, which aims to seize land, create a coercive environment, and force Palestinians to leave their homes. (March 21, 2026)

Publications of human rights NGOs:

• The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) condemned the Israeli Occupation Forces’ (IOF) ongoing commission of genocidal acts in the Gaza Strip, including continued killings and the systematic destruction of all essentials for life. (March 15, 2026)
• Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor documented that the Israeli army has destroyed 93.5 per cent of cemeteries in the Gaza Strip, either completely or partially, since October 2023, stating that this constitutes a grave violation of international humanitarian law and reflects a deliberate pattern of erasure targeting evidence and collective memory. (March 15, 2026)
• Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) reported that Israeli strikes killed 13 people and injured many more during attacks in Deir Al-Balah on 15 March, noting that among the cases was an 11-year-old boy who was dead on arrival at its field hospital, while his three siblings, with moderate injuries, had lost both parents in the attack. The organisation added that it later treated five more patients with shrapnel injuries, including severe cases, in another incident in which children lost their mother, who was pregnant with twins. (March 16, 2026)
• Adalah Center called for an end to the illegal arrests for possessing and raising the Palestinian flag in Israel, stressing that the continuation of this policy constitutes a serious violation of freedom of expression, the right to protest, and the principle of the rule of law. (March 16, 2026)
• The New Humanitarian reported that Helping Hand Coalition (HHC), a partner of Global Aid Network (GAiN), deleted and edited more than 20 posts after being exposed for providing aid to Israeli soldiers and illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank and in Israeli-occupied parts of Syria since 2024. (March 16, 2026)
• The Palestinian Human Rights Organizations Council strongly condemned the decision by the Israeli Military Advocate General to drop the indictment against five Israeli occupation soldiers accused of abusing and raping a Palestinian detainee at the Sde Teiman detention facility. The Council stated that this decision is a deliberate act of impunity and confirms that the Israeli occupation’s judicial and military institutions do not exist to hold perpetrators accountable for crimes committed against Palestinians, but rather to protect and reward them. (March 16, 2026)
• Canadian civil society organizations, in cooperation with international partners, called on the Canadian Prime Minister and the Minister of Foreign Affairs to take immediate action to halt the illegal E1 settlement project in the occupied West Bank. They warned that the project would permanently divide the West Bank into two separate enclaves, thereby entrenching a policy of annexation. (March 16, 2026)
• Human Rights Watch stated that Israeli forces opened fire on two Palestinian children and their parents inside their car, resulting in their deaths. Amnesty International stated that this horrific incident is the latest in a pattern of increasing use of lethal force by Israeli forces against Palestinians, noting that the family posed no threat at the time they were shot. It added that the attack may amount to an extrajudicial execution. (March 16, 2026)
• The Danish Refugee Council issued a report titled “Losing more than home: How displacement in Gaza strips away dignity for families with disabilities“. The report compiles testimonies from Gaza residents, particularly women affected by displacement due to the Israeli war on Gaza. (March 17, 2026)
• The Campaign for Solidarity with Palestine reported that over 150 members of the London Assembly and local councils signed an open letter to London CIV, the body responsible for managing London employees’ pension fund investments, calling for the withdrawal of investments from companies that contribute to Israel’s genocide and apartheid against Palestinians. (March 17, 2026)
• The Palestinian center for prisoners Advocacy issued a statement highlighting the multifaceted daily suffering experienced by Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. It described the “bosta” as one of the harshest experiences – a vehicle used by the prison administration to transport prisoners between facilities or to the courts. The center also released testimonies from recently released Palestinian prisoners detailing the conditions they endured in detention (see here, here, and here). (March 15–18, 2026)
• Defense for Children International – Palestine announced that 51% of Palestinian children in detention are held under administrative detention without charges or trial, marking the highest number and percentage recorded since the organization began monitoring in 2008. According to the latest data from the Israeli Prison Service, the total number of children held in Israeli prisons reached 351 as of December 31, 2025, including 180 children under administrative detention. (March 18, 2026)
• Amnesty International published a report titled “Freedom of expression is highly selective: Austria limits expressions of solidarity with Palestinians,” noting that the Austrian authorities’ treatment of those expressing solidarity with Palestinians during the ongoing genocide in Gaza has had a “chilling effect” on the right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. (March 18, 2026)
• The Hind Rajab Foundation (HRF) filed an appeal with the Spanish Supreme Court after the Criminal Court of the Spanish National Court rejected its complaint against an Israeli soldier for his direct participation in acts amounting to genocide and war crimes during Israel’s assault on Gaza. (March 18, 2026)
• Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP) condemned the rapidly escalating violence in the occupied West Bank, where Israeli state-sponsored violence and settler attacks against Palestinian communities are spiraling out of control, and called on the US government and the international community to end the transfer of weapons that fuel these abuses and to impose meaningful accountability on those responsible for violence. (March 19, 2026)
• Gisha – The Legal Center for Freedom of Movement – issued a report titled “Another Eid in the Shadow of War,” highlighting that the closure of border crossings and ongoing uncertainty are causing severe shortages of goods and sharply rising prices in Gaza amid widespread poverty. (March 19, 2026)
• Human Rights Watch stated that Hungarian authorities should arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he enters their territory. The organization stressed that although Hungary has announced its withdrawal from the International Criminal Court, it remains legally obligated to cooperate with the Court until the withdrawal takes effect in June 2026. (March 20, 2026)

Research and academic studies (in Arabic and English):

• Saudi Journal of Humanities published a research paper by researcher Yousef Zaghloul Hasan and Dr. Ayman Yousef, titled “International Organizations and Human Rights in Gaza after the 7th of October”. (2026)

Opinion Pieces and features:

• The New Yorker published an opinion piece by Isaac Chotiner titled: “How Israel Used the War in Gaza to Accelerate Settlements in the West Bank”. (March 14, 2026)
• Wafa published an article by Israa Ghorani titled: “In Tammoun, Israeli bullets turn Eid celebrations into mourning”.(March 15, 2026)
• Haaretz published an analytical article by Jack Khoury titled: “The Murder of a West Bank Family Lays Bare the Palestinian Struggle to Survive”. (March 16, 2026)
• WAFA published an article titled: “Israel is driving the final nail into the coffin of the Palestinian presence in the northern Jordan Valley”. (March 18, 2026)
• Mondoweiss published an opinion piece by Jonathan Ofir, titled: “Israeli soldiers who gang-raped Palestinian prisoner are now free to return to military service”. (March 18, 2026)

Upcoming human rights opportunities and events:

• Law for Palestine’s International Law and Palestine Bloginvited contributions from legal practitioners, academics, and experts, as well as emerging scholars (including LLM and PhD candidates), to submit their work related to international law issues concerning Palestine for publication on the blog.
• The University of Glasgow announced that applications are now open for the Dima Alhaj Scholarship, which offers the opportunity to one undergraduate applicant and one postgraduate taught applicant joining the university in September 2026. (2026)
• Birzeit University and the Ibrahim Abu-Lughod Institute of International Studies, in partnership with Al-Shabaka: The Palestinian Policy Network, announced the convening of the international conference “South-South Solidarity and Resistance to Imperialism” on October 27–28, 2026, in Ramallah, with in-person and virtual participation available in Arabic, English, and Spanish. The organizers set April 20, 2026, as the deadline for submitting abstracts and September 30, 2026, for full paper submission. (2026)