Shrinking Gaza: Israel moves Yellow Line again – Not a ceasefire Day 88

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 817th day.)

Four Palestinians were killed on Monday evening when Israeli forces bombed a tent sheltering displaced families in the Al‑Mawasi area west of Khan Younis; earlier in the day, a man died from wounds sustained in a previous Israeli strike.

Since the “ceasefire” began on October 11, Israel has killed at least 422 Palestinians. At least 1,189 have been injured. Death toll figures are tentative. 

Israel has so far violated the 11 October ceasefire deal in Gaza at least 969 times in 88 days. More statistics below.

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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.)

Shrinking Gaza: Israel moves Yellow Line again

The Israeli military has spent the past 24 hours expanding the so-called “yellow line” in eastern Gaza, particularly in eastern Gaza City’s Tuffah, Shujayea, and Zeitoun neighborhoods, according to Al Jazeera teams on the ground, squeezing Palestinians into ever smaller clusters of the enclave, and forcing more displaced families to flee as they come under intensive threat.

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Gaza: Spike in flu cases threatens Palestinians amid harsh winter, dire living conditions

An uptick in cases of seasonal flu is sweeping through the Gaza Strip this winter, threatening the lives of thousands due to severe Israeli restrictions on aid, including medicine and essential humanitarian assistance, despite this violating the terms of the ceasefire agreement.

Palestinians infected with flu in Gaza are unable to take care of themselves or seek treatment, as thousands continue to live in flimsy tents and shelters, with little to no heating.

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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 West Bank settlements Israel evacuated* in 2005 are back

Over the past several weeks, the Jenin area and other parts of the northern West Bank have been subjected to a wide-ranging Israeli military operation aimed at creating a “new security reality” in the area that would allow for the reestablishment of the evacuated settlements. The military campaign drew international condemnation after a particular incident in which Israeli soldiers were caught on camera executing two Palestinian men in Jenin after they had surrendered to the army.

Before 2005, Ganim and Kadim settlements were founded with a combined security-agricultural character, and later gradually evolved into permanent residential communities housing religious-nationalist settler families. The Israeli army provided protection and essential infrastructure, roads, electricity, and water, helping entrench settlement presence as a fact on the ground (continue reading here).

*NOTE: Read the UN report on Israel’s so-called Disengagement Plan here.

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WEST BANK HEADLINES:

West Bank Invasions, Abductions And Violations on Monday

West Bank: Israeli Forces Shoot 6 Including Children

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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.)

Israeli national security minister calls for execution of Marwan Barghouti*

Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir publicly called for the execution of imprisoned Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti, age 66, during a meeting of his Otzma Yehudit party at the Knesset, Israel’s news agency JNS reported on 5 January.

He repeated claims that Barghouti is “a murderer” and “a terrorist**,” language used to justify the call for execution.

Israeli officials have acknowledged that his potential release represents a political threat, with JNS citing an October poll by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research showing that Barghouti would win decisively in a leadership vote. 

*NOTE: Marwan Barghouti was jailed in 2002 on charges of being involved in attacks that resulted in the deaths of five people in different incidents. He denied not only the Israeli charges but also the legitimacy of the court which tried him. According to different reports, he did not face a fair trial with “numerous breaches of international law.” So, while he is serving 5 life sentences, he and others reject both the charges and the trial’s outcome.

Recent Palestinian polls suggest that Barghouti is the most popular Palestinian leader today, and would unify the Palestinian people as no other could. More than 200 cultural and public figures signed a petition in recent weeks, calling for his release.

**NOTE: The use of the word “terrorist” for an individual or group that resists occupation and oppression is a political, not fact-based choice. In reality, international law supports the efforts of resistance groups against an occupying power, the UN extending that right to the point of armed resistance.

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Smotrich backs renaming COGAT to ‘Coordinator of Government Activities in Judea and Samaria*’

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich told JNS on Monday he supports renaming the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) office to the Coordinator of Government Activities in Judea and Samaria.

“An interesting idea—I’ll talk to him,” Smotrich said, responding to JNS’s question about Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan’s appeal to Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz to formally change the name of the body (continue reading here).

*NOTE: While the international community refers to the land between the Jordan River and Israel as the West Bank, Israeli politicians call it “Judea and Samaria.” Israel has illegally occupied the territory since 1967, imposing apartheid rule upon the Palestinians as they slowly displace them with settlers.

Israel has illegally built around 280 settlements on Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, which are home to more than 700,000 illegal settlers. Some settler groups have a history of violence against Palestinians, often with the assistance of Israeli military forces (a phenomenon that has grown significantly worse since October 7th, 2023).

In a landmark advisory opinion on July 19, 2024, the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s decades-long occupation of Palestinian land “illegal” and demanded the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

 (*NOTE: Learn about Israeli settler violence here and here.)

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ISRAEL HEADLINES:

Tel Aviv moves to extend ban on foreign journalists entering Gaza

Journalists have been barred from entering and independently reporting in Gaza since the start of the genocide in October 2023.

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Israel’s arms manufacturers benefit from EU funding for cutting edge civilian research

Public data shows that Israeli arms companies have won grants for civilian projects despite a strict EU ban on funding research that can be used in warfare.

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Israel Is Cynically Capitalizing on the Iranian Protests for Its Own Ends

Israeli officials claim they want “freedom” for the Iranian people. In reality, it’s a transparent coercion campaign to foment war.

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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.)

The ‘Worthy People’ of Religious Zionism Are Endangering Israel’s Existence

Netanyahu isn’t being shaken down by far-right ministers Smotrich and Ben-Gvir; in fact, the opposite is true: he’s is using them as part of his strategy to extend his time in power. This strategy has brought about the unnecessary extending of the war.

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Trump scraps the Witkoff plan: No talks with Tehran

US President Trump rejects Envoy Steve Witkoff’s proposal for Iran talks, opting for “activist” pressure, including following up on his “locked and loaded” threat. The only remaining questions are how and when. Exclusive details on the coordinated timeline with Israel.

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Tehran threatens preemptive action amid rising tensions

The Defense Council warns against “interventionist remarks” from the US and Israel and asserts right to strike first if hostile intent is detected.

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OTHER NEWS & HEADLINES:

Global Sumud Flotilla* plans larger spring mission to Gaza, citing unmet humanitarian needs

The Global Sumud Flotilla mission’s Türkiye coordinator, Huseyin Durmaz, said that while hundreds of aid trucks were promised daily under the October truce framework, only about 40 to 50 trucks carrying humanitarian supplies are entering Gaza each day. After almost 3 months of so-called ceasefire, the terms are not being implemented, and humanitarian needs in the territory remain unmet.

Durmaz said the next mission is expected to include participation from more countries than previous flotillas. He said the need for major global initiatives has compelled them to “find new ways and methods to be the voice of the people of Gaza and to produce much bolder and greater ideas — and to act — in order to end” the suffering (continue reading here).

*NOTE: Read about the Gaza Flotilla 2025 missions here and here; learn about the deadly mission in 2010 here; and find out about the global flotilla movement here.

Iran arrests ‘Mossad agent’ during crackdown on violent protests

Iranian authorities have detained an agent of Mossad [Israel’s national intelligence agency] among rioters carrying out attacks against security forces in the country, Persian media reported on 5 January. The agent reportedly confessed to being recruited by Israeli intelligence through social media, and was part of a currently active spy network.

Israel’s Mossad has repeatedly infiltrated deep into Iran over the years. During the 12-day Israel–Iran war, Israeli intelligence activated a massive campaign of drone attacks on Iranian air defense sites, carried out by local agents. Many other complex and shocking operations have been carried out by the Mossad throughout the past years, including violent assassinations of nuclear scientists (continue reading here).

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Meet Paul Singer, the Israel-Linked Billionaire Trump Megadonor Set to Make a Killing on Venezuela Oil

One of President Donald Trump’s top billionaire donors, who has spent the past several months backing a push for regime change in Venezuela, is about to cash in after the president’s kidnapping of the nation’s president, Nicolas Maduro, this weekend.

While he declined to tell members of Congress, Trump has said he tipped off oil executives before the illegal attack.

In 2024, Singer, an 81-year-old with a net worth of $6.7 billion, donated $5 million to Make America Great Again Inc., Trump’s Super PAC. Singer donated tens of millions more in the 2024 cycle to support Trump’s allies.

Singer is also a major pro-Israel donor, with his foundation having donated more than $3.3 million to groups like the Birthright Israel Foundation, the Israel America Academic Exchange, Boundless Israel, and others in 2021, according to tax filings (continue reading here).

RELATED: NeoCon billionaire Paul Singer is sending US tech jobs to Israel

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MORE HEADLINES:

Israel has detained Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya without charges for a year. Why has the New York Times refused to cover his case?

One year ago, an iconic photo from Gaza went viral of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya walking through rubble in Gaza to be detained by Israeli forces. Today, Safiya is still being held without charges, but you wouldn’t know it from reading the New York Times.

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Venezuela extends the lesson of Gaza into the western hemisphere

The hollowness of western universalism, liberalism and globalization are now on display for the whole world to see.

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