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 856th day.)
The Israeli army killed a Palestinian man Wednesday in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, on the first day of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, medics said.
Since the “ceasefire” began on October 11, Israel has killed at least 603 Palestinians. Over 1,607 have been injured. Death toll figures are tentative.
Israel has so far violated the 11 October ceasefire deal in Gaza at least 1,620 times (as of Feb. 1, 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.
More than 75,000 people were killed in the first 16 months of the two-year war in Gaza, at least 25,000 more than the death toll announced by local authorities at the time, according to a study published on Wednesday in the Lancet medical journal.
The research also found that reporting by the Gaza health ministry about the proportion of women, children and elderly people among those killed was accurate: 56% of violent deaths in Gaza.
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The plans reviewed by the Guardian call for the phased construction of a military outpost that will eventually have a footprint of 1,400 metres by 1,100 metres, ringed by 26 trailer-mounted armored watch towers, a small arms range, bunkers, and a warehouse for military equipment for operations. The entire base will be encircled with barbed wire.
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Fears of ethnic cleansing in Gaza and the West Bank: UN rights report
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.)
West Bank: Palestinian Succumbs to Injuries in Jerusalem
‘Missing the beauty’: Israel bans Ramadan decorations in Jerusalem
Ramadan began in Palestine on Wednesday. Across occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank, Israeli forces have increased their presence and carried out additional arrests in recent days.
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Israel extends length of settler raids at Al-Aqsa Mosque* as Ramadan begins
Israeli authorities extended settler raids at Al-Aqsa Mosque by an hour on the eve of Ramadan, while ramping up restrictions on Palestinians’ access to the site. Ultra-nationalist groups that organize daily incursions at the occupied East Jerusalem site will now be allowed to remain for five hours instead of four, according to Ynet.
*NOTE: Anyone can visit the Al Aqsa Mosque grounds, but only Muslims are allowed to pray there, according to an understanding known as the ‘status quo agreement,’ under which for decades, Israel has formally pledged to allow Muslims to pray at the site, while Jews pray at the Western Wall below. The agreement has been in place since Israel captured the Old City of Jerusalem from Jordan in 1967.
In practice, however, restrictions have steadily eroded. Since 2023, Israeli police have increasingly allowed Jewish visitors to pray inside the compound. Authorities have also permitted audible group prayer, singing and, in 2024, public Torah lessons, particularly on the eastern side of the compound. Many Palestinians fear this erosion will lead to open conflict.
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Israel Police Break Tradition of Coordinating Jerusalem Ramadan Rules With Waqf Al-Aqsa Guards
Police summoned the head of the Waqf, who answers to the Jordanian government, to a police station in East Jerusalem, instead of meeting at the compound. Sources said the sheikh was told that going to the police station would constitute a violation of the status quo.
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WaPo: As Israel takes steps to claim land in West Bank, U.S. stands by
Despite President Donald Trump’s opposition to annexation, Israel has taken steps to expand control over the West Bank that experts say may lead to seizure of territory.
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ALL IN A DAY’S WORK: MORE ISRAELI OCCUPATION ACTIONS ON WEDNESDAY:
3 Palestinians wounded in attack by Israeli settlers
Overnight Israeli Invasions, Abductions in the West Bank
Hebron: Israeli Forces Demolish 2 Buildings and Detonate a Slain Man’s House
Israeli Forces Abduct Jerusalem Rights Activist Near Al-Aqsa
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 forces launch new incursion into Syria*’s Quneitra countryside, raid homes
*NOTE: Although Israel is not at war with Syria, the Israeli army has carried out over 1,000 airstrikes and 400 cross-border raids on Syria since December 2024, killing approximately 30 Syrians. The situation appears to meet the criteria for occupation – and where occupation exists, the occupying power is bound by extensive legal obligations.
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.)
The U.S. is approaching the precipice of war without articulating even the vaguest vision for what follows and with few forces, domestic or international, able or willing to challenge Trump or his administration. Netanyahu, with his first gamble against Iran having paid off last June, is prepared to go all in.
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Top Israeli Doctors Urge Court to Allow Life-saving Evacuations of Gaza Patients
The doctors are calling on the Supreme Court to restore medical evacuations from Gaza to hospitals in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, warning that ‘every day of delay in evacuating patients directly endangers their lives.’
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Jerusalem rabbi gets 20 months for using fake ID to dupe 12 women into sleeping with him
Married father used alias ‘Jack Segal’ on dating sites between 2016 and 2023, posing as secular and single; also ordered to pay up to $4,800 compensation per victim.
OTHER NEWS & HEADLINES:
US lawmakers demand accountability* for Palestinian-American teen detained in Israel
Fifteen members of Congress have written to Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, demanding to know what steps the United States has taken in response to the mistreatment of Palestinian-American teenager Mohammed Ibrahim, who spent nine months in Israeli detention.
The letter poses three questions to Rubio: whether state department officials have met with Mohammed since his release to hear his account directly, whether Washington has asked Israel to conduct an impartial investigation into the treatment of Ibrahim and his fellow detainees, and whether any Israeli military or prison personnel have been held accountable.
*NOTE: Israel’s self-investigations – on the rare occasions when they do take place – consistently whitewash its crimes, fail to appropriately punish the perpetrators, and tend to focus on individuals and individual incidents, ignoring the dangerous, far-reaching policies and assumptions rampant in Israeli thinking: impunity, lethality, and dehumanization.
Human rights groups have documented Israel’s lack of integrity when reporting on its own behavior toward Palestinians. Israeli sources, including the government itself, have a long track record of lying.
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Iran war described as ‘biggest opportunity’ at US oil lobby’s DC summit
From the stage at Washington DC’s Anthem theater, veteran industry consultant Bob McNally of the Rapidan Energy Group could not contain his excitement over the prospect of toppling the Islamic Republic of Iran.
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US-Israel attack on Iran could last weeks, be regime-threatening: Report
Israeli officials reportedly preparing for war within days as Washington builds up military presence in region.
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Opinion: US War on Iran Would Be a Cynical, Lawless, and Catastrophic Escalation
Trump is following in the footsteps of the five US presidents before him, quickly abandoning his formal strategy goals and diverting America’s overpriced but impotent war machine back to the Middle East.
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US judge overturns deportation order for Columbia student Muhsin Mahdawi
In a statement released by his lawyers, Mahdawi welcomed the ruling and praised the court’s commitment to due process and the rule of law. He described the decision as “an important step toward defending what fear has sought to destroy: the right to free speech for peace and justice.”
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Philadelphia Could Elect Its First Muslim Congressman. He’s Not Sure Where He Stands on Israel.
Many Muslim Philadelphians “may like [Sharif] Street personally,” said Yusuf Abdul Hameed, a supporter of the Philadelphia chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), “but they’re upset because of his lack of courage to really condemn Israel for what clearly was a genocide.”
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Israel secretly sought legal advice about Britons serving in the IDF
The advice focused specifically on whether UK nationals “can serve in foreign militaries” and whether they would “be at risk when traveling back to the UK”.
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Filmmaker Refuses Berlin Award Over Israeli General’s Recognition
Kaouther Ben Hania, Tunisian filmmaker and director of “The Voice of Hind Rajab,” chose to forgo an award at the Berlin International Film Festival this week after an Israeli general was honored at the same event.
In her statement, she emphasized a sense of duty over gratitude, using the occasion to call attention to justice and accountability for Hind Rajab, a five-year-old Palestinian girl killed by Israeli soldiers in Gaza in 2024 while rescuers trying to reach her were also targeted.
A documentary about a retired Israeli general’s Oct. 7 rescue mission, “The Road Between Us: The Ultimate Rescue,” received the Dove for Justice award for the “profound inspiration” it provides to global audiences. Montreal-born Barry AvriAvrichicated the award to what he hopes will be “a peaceful end to a horribly dark and conflicted time.”
NOTABLE QUOTE: “Without accountability, there is no peace”
Director of “The Voice of Hind Rajab” Kaouther Ben Hania, declines Most Valuable Film award:
ICYMI, A SELECTION OF YESTERDAY’S HEADLINES:
Medics in UK and US say they have been barred from Gaza after speaking out
Palestinian child killed after stepping on mine in West Bank
Christian Zionist leader to Jerusalem Post: Tucker Carlson should ask Israel for forgiveness – opinion
(Read yesterday’s daily update here.)
STATISTICS OCTOBER 7, 2023 – FEBRUARY 18, 2026*:
- At least 73,183 Palestinians killed, 182,71 injured – including:
- At least 72,069 killed in Gaza (~22,000 children, 33,000 women and girls)
- At least 1,114 killed in the West Bank (~230 children)
- At least 171,728 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 8,000 more are still buried under rubble; 3,000 more are reportedly missing, with no information about their fate.
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.
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. At least 11 Palestinian children have died of extreme cold this winter.
Reported Israeli death toll from October 7, 2023 – February 18, 2026: ~1,661 – including ~1,139** on October 7, 2023 (~36 children), 472 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 281 Palestinian journalists and media workers (as of Jan. 21, 2026); Palestinians have killed 4 Israeli journalists (other groups have tallied between 215 and 333 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)
- Compliant aid: Who are the Israel-approved NGOs scaling up in Gaza?
- Israel’s Favorite American President
- Israel’s “Yellow Line” Is a Death Trap for Palestinians. We Drove Into It.
- Why Israel’s expanding occupation in Syria presents a critical legal test
- Gaza is not a natural disaster. It is the victim of genocide enabled by global inaction
- Netanyahu’s plan to “end” US aid to Israel is to give even more money under a different name
- Noor’s short life of unimaginable suffering
- Israel Destroyed Gaza’s Hospitals. Now It’s Banning Doctors Without Borders.
- Is Spite of What Zionists Say, It’s a Good Thing to Criticize Governments
- Palestinian mother, daughter recount strip searches, harsh conditions in Israeli detention
- Israel used weapons in Gaza that made thousands of Palestinians evaporate
- ADL’s Stats Twist Israel’s Critics Into Antisemites
- Why Is the World Silent When the Gaza Genocide Is Not Over?
- AZAPAC, the new PAC opposing Israeli domination of U.S policies
