Compilation of news reports – IAK staff
(While a “ceasefire” is ostensibly in place, Israel has continued its assault on Gaza without interruption. If Americans Knew considers the war to be ongoing, and in its 825th day.)
Israeli forces on Thursday killed at least ten Palestinians, despite the declared ceasefire.
Since the “ceasefire” began on October 11, Israel has killed at least 463 Palestinians. At least 1,269 have been injured. Death toll figures are tentative.
At least 25 Palestinians in Gaza have died due to the extreme cold, including 21 children, since the start of Israel’s genocidal war in October 2023.
Israel has so far violated the 11 October ceasefire deal in Gaza at least 1,193 times (as of Jan. 9, 2026). More statistics below.
GAZA NEWS & HEADLINES:
(For some basic info on the Palestine-Israel conflict, go here. For more critical context, skim this, this, and this. To read about a remarkable but underreported, 20-month-long peaceful protest in Gaza against Israel, go here.)
Israeli, American reports highlight healthcare disaster in Gaza
“Destroying Hope for the Future: Reproductive Violence in Gaza,” by Physicians for Human Rights and the Global Human Rights Clinic at the University of Chicago Law School, and “Motherhood Under Fire: How Much Can a Woman Endure?” by Physicians for Human Rights Israel, describe the grave situation of women and newborns in the Gaza Strip during the two-year war there and since the cease-fire formally took effect in October.
The reports reveal the near-complete destruction of the healthcare system for women in the coastal enclave, where 33 of the 36 hospitals were reportedly either fully destroyed or sustained considerable damage (continue reading here).
Jorge Moreira da Silva, UN under-secretary-general and UNOPS (UN Office for Project Services), said on Thursday that “Gaza contains more than 60 million tonnes of debris, the capacity of nearly 3,000 container ships.” Each person in Gaza is now surrounded, on average, by 30 tons of rubble
“It is likely to take over 7 years to clear this rubble,” da Silva noted. “The people in Gaza “are exhausted, traumatized, and overwhelmed,” stressing that “the harsh winter conditions and the heavy rains this week are doubling people’s misery and desperation.”
Winter Cold and Collapsing Buildings Kill Palestinians in Gaza as Israel Blocks Shelter Supplies
Israel’s continued strangulation of essential supplies during winter has left hundreds of thousands of Palestinians shivering in the wet and cold and nearly three dozen dead. The genocidal war has displaced nearly the entire population and reduced Gaza to a broken landscape of rubble and collapsed structures.
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are now living in flimsy tents that provide little shelter from the elements. According to the UN, the heavy rains and flooding have rendered thousands of tents uninhabitable and placed nearly 800,000 people, almost 40 percent of the population, in flood-prone sites at heightened risk—leaving families exposed to the winter cold without blankets, mattresses, or heating. Hundreds of tents have simply blown away and makeshift shelters have been heavily damaged (continue reading here).
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Trump announces ‘board of peace’ formed for Gaza
US President Donald Trump on Thursday announced a key element of his plan to end the war in the Palestinian territory: “It is my Great Honor to announce that THE BOARD OF PEACE has been formed,” he posted on Truth Social. “I can say with certainty that it is the Greatest and Most Prestigious Board ever assembled at any time, any place,” Trump said, adding that the members of the body will be announced “shortly” (continue reading here).
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Everything we know so far about Gaza’s transitional government
The Trump administration’s plan to end the devastating war in Gaza and reconstruct the shattered territory reached a major milestone on Wednesday after the Palestinian-led committee set to replace Hamas was formed.
The 15-member ‘National Committee for the Administration of Gaza’ will provide the foundations for an overhaul of Gazan politics, outsourcing decision-making from Palestinians in what many have described as a “colonial” project steered by US and Israeli officials (continue reading here).
OCCUPIED WEST BANK/EAST JERUSALEM NEWS & HEADLINES:
(Every day, Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem endure dozens of incidents like the ones below, at the hands of Israeli soldiers and/or settlers. For background on the West Bank, read this and this. For information on the significance of Israeli settlers in the West Bank, read this and this.)
The Arrest of This Widow Shows How Scared Israeli Authorities Are of Palestinians’ Stories
(From Ha’aretz) Yahya Ayyash’s widow was arrested by Israeli police officers after she allegedly “published inciting remarks on her Facebook page on the 30th anniversary of his assassination.”
What does the State of Israel want from Ayyash’s widow? Why does Israel have the time and resources to arrest her at this time?
For a moment, it seemed to me that it involved trivialities, but where I see trivialities or something that doesn’t make sense, the State of Israel sees a strategic interest. The government just wants to use her to show who’s in charge – of the dead and their widows and of the narrative (continue reading here).
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Occupation Forces Shoot, Abduct a Palestinian Near Hebron
Israeli forces abducted the young man Khaled Hassan Al-Fasfous, after shooting him with live ammunition after besieging his home in the town of Dura, southwest of Hebron. Soldiers blocked ambulance crews from approaching Al-Fasfous, and abducted him (continue reading here).
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Invasions, Abductions Violations Across West Bank
Israeli occupation forces carried out widespread invasions, abductions, and field interrogations across the occupied West Bank on Thursday, targeting multiple towns and villages in the central, northern, northwestern, and southern regions (continue reading here).
ISRAEL NEWS & HEADLINES:
(Israel is a tiny country, about the size of New Jersey, with a population smaller than the US state of Georgia – about 10 million (of which about 20 percent are Palestinians), yet it is in the news constantly. As has been demonstrated again and again, however, mainstream media rarely covers Israel accurately. IAK passes along only factual reporting.)
Rights groups warn Israel’s execution bill will legalize state killing of Palestinians*
The proposed Israeli law would allow Palestinians to be hanged within 90 days, bar appeals, and shield Israeli officials from prosecution.
*NOTE: This is just one of many examples of Israel’s apartheid framework, which extends in various forms across Gaza, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and inside Israel (where 21% of residents are Palestinian). Multiple human rights organizations have documented and reported that Israel is indeed practicing apartheid, including: Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, the Israeli human rights groups B’Tselem, and Yesh Din , the UN Special Rapporteur on Palestine, the International Court of Justice, the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), and Harvard Law School’s International Human Rights Clinic.
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Iranian defense minister accuses US, Israel of ‘directing’ violent riots
Iran’s Defense Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh said on 15 January that the Islamic Republic has “precise intelligence” that Washington and Tel Aviv orchestrated the recent deadly riots across the country, which resulted in the deaths of dozens including civilians, children, and security forces (continue reading here).
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Network linked to Israel pushes to shape external Iran protest narrative
An Al Jazeera investigation uncovers how a coordinated campaign involving Israeli officials and suspicious accounts are hijacking the #FreeThePersianPeople hashtag – and playing a central role in manufacturing momentum and steering the discourse toward specific geopolitical goals (continue reading here).
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Israeli warplanes strike 4 residential buildings in Lebanon* despite ceasefire
*NOTE: Israel has attacked Lebanon almost every day since the ceasefire was reached on 27 November 2024. committing over 10,000 air and ground violations.
NEWS & HEADLINES FROM ISRAELI MEDIA:
(You can learn a lot about a country from its headlines. Get a glimpse inside this country that is rife with turmoil and contradictions that receives $63 million a day from America.)
Under the proposed law, the government would be empowered to fire the entire Higher Education Council appoint all new members. It would also be entitled to use the 14-billion-shekel ($4.4 billion) annual budget for university education as it sees fit.
The bill would empower the government to impose sanctions and fines on universities and colleges and directly intervene in the council’s work if it chooses. It is officially called the Higher Education Council Bill (Amendment – Strengthening Transparency and Public Oversight of the Higher Education Council), but in higher education itself, it has come to be known as the “law to crush academia” (continue reading here).
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Israel sees spike in PTSD and suicide among troops as war against Hamas, Hezbollah persists
Israeli studies show that the Gaza war and conflicts in Lebanon and Syria have taken their toll on the mental health of soldiers.
OTHER NEWS & HEADLINES:
The U.S. has announced ‘Phase 2’ of the Gaza ceasefire. Here’s why it doesn’t matter for Palestinians.
For Palestinians in Gaza, Phase 2 of the ceasefire offers little hope that it will fundamentally change the status quo Israel has established over the past three months, which many refer to as “a new form of genocide” (continue reading here).
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Ms. Rachel’s Colors That Survived: Gaza’s children share stories of survival through art in New York show
From living rooms in London and classrooms around the world to the tents of Gaza, Ms. Rachel is known and loved globally for her educational videos, followed by more than 18 million subscribers on YouTube. This week, the educator and children’s advocate opened Colors That Survived, an exhibition dedicated to raising funds and awareness for children in Gaza.
“I am forever changed by connecting with these incredible children from Gaza,” Ms. Rachel said. “They share their powerful art, stories and hopes for the future with such courage in the face of unimaginable hardship” (continue reading here).
RELATED: Ms. Rachel targeted by pro-Israel group for calling to feed starving Palestinian children
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President Trump Tells Iran He Won’t Attack the Country*: Iranian Envoy
An Iranian official said on Thursday that President Trump has informed Iran he doesn’t plan to attack the country and asked Tehran to exercise restraint.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), a close ally of President Trump, claimed in a post on X that Moghadam’s remarks weren’t true. “The circumstances around the necessary, decisive action to be taken against the evil Iranian regime have nothing to do with President Trump’s will or determination,” Graham said. “Nothing could be further from the truth. Quite the opposite. Stay tuned” (continue reading here).
*NOTE: It is difficult to know when to believe members of the Trump administration, especially after the Washington Post recently revealed that Netanyahu and Trump colluded to lie to the world in order to launch a surprise attack on Iran.
RELATED: US Surging Military Assets To the Middle East To Prepare for War With Iran After Trump Postpones Attack
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Despite Court Ruling, ICE Can’t Detain Activist Mahmoud Khalil* — For Now
A federal appeals court ruled Thursday to throw out a lower court’s order to release Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil from detention. Khalil has 45 days to appeal, his attorney told The Intercept (continue reading here).
*NOTE: Pro-Palestine demonstrations on college campuses, like the ones Mahmoud Khalil participated in, have overall been peaceful and non-confrontational, and have notably included a significant number of Jewish students. When there has been violence, it has typically come from pro-Israel counter-protesters and police.
The silencing of pro-Palestine campus protest violates students’ and professors’ rights to free speech.
ICYMI, A SELECTION OF YESTERDAY’S HEADLINES:
Founders of deadly GHF ‘shaping’ new US-backed administration for Gaza: Report
New wall threatens thousands of Palestinian families
French lawmakers face backlash over bill targeting ‘renewed antisemitism’
(Read yesterday’s daily update here.)
STATISTICS OCTOBER 7, 2023 – JANUARY 15, 2026*:
- At least 72,558 Palestinians killed, 182,347 injured – including:
- At least 71,455 killed in Gaza (~22,000 children, 33,000 women and girls)
- At least 1,103 killed in the West Bank (~229 children)
- At least 171,347 injured in Gaza
- About 11,000 injured in the West Bank
*NOTE: Thousands of those killed in Gaza have yet to be identified, and an estimated 10,000 more are still buried under rubble. Additionally, the numbers of injured and starved are very conservative estimates. Only the dead who are brought to hospitals are included in the official fatality count.
Reported Israeli death toll from October 7, 2023 – January 15, 2026: ~1,661 – including ~1,139** on October 7, 2023 (~36 children), 471 military forces since the ground invasion began in Gaza, about 52 military and civilians (by one count, there have been 59 victims) in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Israel.
By one count, Israeli attacks have killed approximately 275 Palestinian journalists and media workers; Palestinians have killed 4 Israeli journalists (other groups have tallied between 215 and 328 Palestinian journalists killed – depending on the criteria used).
**NOTE: It is unknown at this time how many of the deaths and injuries of Israelis on October 7 were caused by Israeli soldiers.
- Human rights reports on Israel-Palestine (regularly updated)
- ‘My leg went to heaven before me’: Israeli war extinguishes Gaza childhoods
- Founders of deadly GHF ‘shaping’ new US-backed administration for Gaza: Report
- Genocide isn’t a mistake. Which is why the media can’t tell you the truth about Gaza
- “Praise Allah, There Are Still People Like You”: Jeffrey Epstein Nurtured Israel-Emirates Ties Before Abraham Accords
- Trump family has long record of supporting Israeli causes
- Militant Pro-Israel Group Agrees to Halt Operations in New York
- Israel Has Demolished 2,500 Buildings in Gaza Since Signing Ceasefire Deal
- Iran, Gaza and the politics of counting the dead
- How Israel’s move in Somaliland fits in its broader strategy for regional dominance
- As genocide continues in Gaza, the West Bank is pushed into a new Nakba
- Israeli settlers beat elderly, deaf Palestinian man in West Bank attack, video shows
- U.S. May Bankroll New Israeli Armored Vehicles With Billions of Dollars, Internal Files Reveal
- How Israel and the US are exploiting Iranian protests
- The New Neoconservatives
