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| UKPALMHN Solidarity Space (Monday 26 May is a public holiday in the UK so there will not be a meeting on that day) Next meeting: Monday 2 June at 1pm (UK time) This is an open space where people exchange their emotional responses with a view to remaining resilient amidst a constant stream of distressing news. Please write to ukpalmhn@gmail.com if you would like a link to this meeting. UK Psychologists for Palestine launch new blog and newsletter The new newsletter and article-based platform is a resource for Psychologists and people in Psychology who are concerned about Palestinians’ ongoing plight and dehumanisation. It is tailored for psychologists and individuals working in psychology across the UK, offering insights and resources from UK-based psychologists. We believe that human rights are universal and that all people are equal. As psychologists and mental health professionals, our work supports human well-being, aligning with our vision of justice, dignity, and humanity for all. To contribute a piece: ukpsychologistsforpalestine25@gmail.com New platform: https://open.substack.com/pub/ukpsychologistsforpalestine Medical Aid for Palestinians Stride challenge UK-Palestine Mental Health Network Steering Group member, Teresa Bailey, has joined the MAP Stride challenge walking a distance equivalent to Occupied East Jerusalem to Gaza in the period from 15 May to 15 June. You can support Teresa and follow her virtual progress here: https://medicalaidforpalestinians.enthuse.com/pf/teresa-bailey Leading aid and human rights organisations condemn the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation as a dangerous, politicised sham Source: ReliefWeb Date: 19 May Fifty-five humanitarian and rights groups have denounced the Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, arguing it undermines aid neutrality and fails to reach the most vulnerable. They assert that the foundation’s militarised aid distribution model politicises humanitarian assistance and compromises the safety of aid workers. https://reliefweb.int/report/occupied-palestinian-territory/leading-aid-and-human-rights-organisations-condemn-gaza-humanitarian-foundation-dangerous-politicised-sham One day with UNRWA in Gaza Source: European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations Date: 20 May The article describes what UNRWA does every day in Gaza: UNRWA continues operating in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem, despite the active war in Gaza and the heavy restrictions. UNRWA staff provides aid to the most vulnerable, including psychosocial support, as the daily exposure to violent killing, bombings, drones, displacement and lack of all basic resources is having a devastating impact on the mental health of the population. https://civil-protection-humanitarian-aid.ec.europa.eu/news-stories/stories/one-day-unrwa-gaza_en The number of UNRWA staff killed in Gaza has surpassed 300 Source: Commissioner-General of UNRWA Date: 18 May “The vast majority of staff were killed by the Israeli Army with their children & loved ones: whole families wiped out. Several were killed in the line of duty while serving their communities. Those killed were mostly UN health workers & teachers, supporting their communities.” https://x.com/UNLazzarini/status/1924123654683611477 Israel’s blockade has transcended military tactics to become a tool of extermination” Source: Human Rights Watch Date: 15 May HRW has issued a recent news update about Gaza. “The Genocide Convention obligates state parties to ‘employ all means reasonably available to them, so as to prevent genocide so far as possible.’ States that are party to the 1948 Genocide Convention, including the United States, United Kingdom, France, and Germany, risk legal liability for failing to act to prevent genocide in Gaza, Human Rights Watch said. https://www.hrw.org/news/2025/05/15/gaza-latest-israeli-plan-inches-closer-extermination“ Israel burned the ground under our feet”: Hundreds killed in intensified Gaza assault Source: +972 Magazine Date: 16 May In a wave of airstrikes from Khan Younis to Jabalia, Israeli forces targeted hospitals and homes, killing over 250 and paralysing rescue efforts. Sumaya Al-Hajj, 42, was visiting her mother, who had undergone leg surgery at the hospital, when the bombing started. “In mere seconds, dozens of heavy missiles and shells rained down from all directions […] Frozen in fear, Al-Hajj stood helpless by the door of her mother’s room. ‘I didn’t know what to do. Should I flee or stay? Take my mother or leave her? I couldn’t even look out the window — shrapnel, smoke, and black dust were flying everywhere, I don’t remember how long the terror lasted, but there was screaming everywhere, and the injured and the dead were lying on the ground. No one could help them. The fear paralysed everyone.” https://www.972mag.com/hundreds-killed-intensified-gaza-assault/ Palestinian Centre for Human Rights releases report on lack of privacy and safety for women in makeshift camps Source: Palestinian Centre for Human Rights Date: 18 May The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) has released a report titled “Makeshift Camps in Gaza: A Harsh Environment Depriving Women of Safety and Privacy.” The report highlights the dire conditions faced by women in makeshift camps across Gaza, where basic human necessities are entirely absent. https://pchrgaza.org/palestinian-center-for-human-rights-releases-report-on-lack-of-privacy-and-safety-for-women-in-makeshift-camps/ Psychoanalysis Under Occupation reading groups Source: USA-Palestine Mental Health Network Date: Two groups of six sessions each starting on Wednesday 25 June or Thursday 26 June Psychoanalysis Under Occupation: Practicing Resistance in Palestine (Routledge, 2022) is co-authored by Professors Lara & Stephen Sheehi. It centres the work of Palestinian clinicians to embrace the full subjectivity of Palestinian people who refuse to be solely defined by the occupation and the ongoing genocide. At the same time, the book explains how the occupation has infiltrated the mental health system in Israel/Palestine as well as compromised the mental health of an entire population. Further information: https://mailchi.mp/5c325d7db62c/more-openings-book-group-may-39012 National March for Palestine in London – Nakba 77 The Palestine Solidarity Campaign reports that half a million people were on the streets marching for Palestine. https://www.instagram.com/reel/DJwREX3InIo EVENTS Our Events page is updated weekly with events related to Palestine and mental health. As of 21 May, there are 11 up to date events listed. https://ukpalmhn.com/events/ FEATURED EVENT Shubbak Festival 2025: A Window into Contemporary Arab Cultures Friday 23 May to 15 June across London Shubbak Festival 2025, running from 23 May to 15 June across London, showcases contemporary Arab cultures through diverse events, including theatre, music, visual arts, and fashion. Highlights feature the Khashabi Theatre’s performance of “MILK” and the “Art of the Palestinian Poster” exhibition. The festival aims to celebrate and promote Arab artists and their work. https://www.shubbak.co.uk/ Further information on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/DHLekOUI5PD/?igsh=MWlrNXVsMDVzbXRzYg== ACTIONS Our Featured Action is available below and also on our dedicated Actions page together with a range of other current actions https://ukpalmhn.com/gaza-crisis/ FEATURED ACTION Tell Keir Starmer: stop starving Palestinians A Palestine Solidarity Campaign e-petition Right now, with the help of the British government, Israel is deliberately starving more than 2million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. 290,000 Palestinian children are now on the brink of death in Gaza, including 3,500 under the age of five who face imminent starvation. More than 70,000 children have been hospitalised with severe malnutrition as Israel enforces a total blockade – deliberately preventing all access for food, medicine and aid. The only thing entering Gaza today is bombs – some of them dropped from planes partially manufactured in Britain. Use this e-action today to demand that Keir Starmer stops enabling this unconscionable violence and stops arming Israel. https://palestinecampaign.eaction.online/starmer-stop-starving-Palestinians BOYCOTT, DIVESTMENT AND SANCTIONS (BDS)A founding aim of the UK-Palestine Mental Health Network is to “encourage our colleagues individually and collectively to consider their response to the Palestinian call for boycott, sanctions and divestment (BDS).” Co-op members vote in favour of ceasing trade with Israel Source: Fruitnet Date: 20 May At its recent AGM, 72.8% of Co-op members voted to end trade with Israel, reflecting growing concern over human rights violations in the occupied Palestinian territories. The decision aligns the cooperative with the broader Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement advocating for Palestinian rights. https://www.fruitnet.com/fresh-produce-journal/co-op-members-vote-in-favour-of-ceasing-trade-with-israel/266855.article King’s College Cambridge to divest millions from “occupation” and arms industry Source: Middle East Eye Date: 20 May King’s College Cambridge has announced plans to divest from arms companies and entities involved in activities deemed illegal or contravening global norms, such as occupation. This decision follows sustained student protests against the college’s investments in firms supplying weapons to Israel and Russia. https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/kings-college-cambridge-divest-millions-occupation-and-arms-industry |
الشبكة البريطانية الفلسطينية للصحة النفسية 