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| ‘We slept this night in complete darkness. We couldn’t even turn on our phones, not even for a faint light, because the small drones were roaming the alleys between houses, firing in all directions. We lowered the sound of our breathing so as not to draw attention.’ A ‘young friend in Gaza’ quoted by Heather Formaini in her regular mailing. Dear colleagues, UKPALMHN is issuing the urgent appeal asking you to take action on the catastrophic situation in Northern Gaza. While Israel is committing atrocities throughout the region, this is one that must be stopped before the entire population of Northern Gaza is either forcibly displaced or murdered. Please write to your MP and encourage others to do so. Here is a template letter to use if you wish. Dear MP, I/we are writing to you as a matter of extreme urgency because the population of Jabaliya refugee camp in Northern Gaza and the surrounding communities are under violent attack from Israeli forces as will soon be the whole of Northern Gaza with its remaining population of 400,000 people. This is a genocide in action and we cannot stand by while it happens. The Israeli army seeks to evacuate, starve or kill anyone who remains, in order to empty Northern Gaza of its entire Palestinian population. People who flee are being attacked as they do so. Hospitals have been ordered to evacuate. According to the charity Medical Aid for Palestinians, Israeli forces have already forced over 70,000 people to flee their homes in Northern Gaza, cutting off the area and subjecting it to intense bombardment, while evacuation routes are blocked. You can imagine the horror that lies in store for the entire population of Northern Gaza if the International Community takes no steps to protect them. In January the International Court of Justice ordered measures to prevent genocide in Gaza, all of which have been ignored by Israel. The catastrophic failure of the international community to take action to enforce a ceasefire has enabled Israel to escalate its onslaught and forced displacement. While the world is distracted by the attacks on Lebanon and potential strikes against Iran, this deadly campaign of murder, forced displacement, destruction of infrastructure and starvation accelerates. I/We urge you to call upon the government to halt all arms supplies to Israel. Two further points 1 The government has declared itself to be in favour of abiding by international law, If it is serious about this intention, then it must act now to insist Israel follows the measures demanded by the ICJ. 2 The government repeats that it supports a two state solution. If it is serious about this, it has to take action to prevent Israel from blatant steps to abort this possibility by ethnically cleansing Northern Gaza, as well as stealing land all over the West Bank. The time for replacing empty slogans with action is now. Please, get together with other MP’s from whatever party or grouping who share the same moral outrage and insist that our government stops making excuses, stops uttering hollow words and takes meaningful steps. There is very little time left to stop the slaughter. Thank you Online and PDF versions of the above template letter are available here: https://ukpalmhn.com/resources/ukpalmhn-urgent-action-11-october-2024/ OTHER RESOURCES: ‘Jabalia is being wiped out’: Gaza pleads for help as Israel intensifies assault One Palestinian journalist said that ‘the situation in the north is horrific and very dangerous’ and implored people to ‘please share what’s happening.’ https://www.commondreams.org/news/israel-northern-gaza-2669359467 Israel subjects northern Gaza to one of the most violent campaigns of its genocide An unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe is imminent as the Israeli occupation tightens its siege on the Jabalia camp and Beit Lahia project in the northern Gaza Strip for the fourth consecutive day. Israel is accelerating the pace of its genocide against the Palestinians there by carrying out “mass and planned killings, as well as widespread forced displacements”. The international community, led by the United Nations, must act swiftly and decisively to save 10s of thousands of residents who are being subjected to one of the most violent campaigns of genocide the Strip has ever witnessed. https://reliefweb.int/report/occupied-palestinian-territory/israel-subjects-northern-gaza-one-most-violent-campaigns-its-genocide-intl-intervention-required OTHER ACTIONS: Palestine Solidarity Campaign Letter writing campaign: Stop the extermination of Palestinians in northern Gaza Over a year into its genocidal assault on Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli military is now intensifying its massacres to forcibly displace the remaining Palestinian population in the north of Gaza – some 400,000 people. The situation amounts to an existential threat to Palestinians remaining in northern Gaza. Email the Foreign Secretary to demand the UK government take urgent steps, including imposing an arms embargo, to stop Israel’s extermination campaign in northern Gaza. https://palestinecampaign.eaction.online/northerngaza A list of current actions you can take from a range of different organisations (including PSC, Stop the War Coalition, Medical Aid for Palestinians and the Palestine Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions National Committee) is available on this page: https://ukpalmhn.com/gaza-crisis/ SYMPOSIUM Sumud and Solidarity: International Mental Health Networks United for Liberation and Justice Friday 18 October at 6pm – 8pm (UK time) The Brazil, Turkiye and South Africa Palestine Mental Health Networks invite you to attend this symposium. Speakers include Dr. Samah Jabr (Head of the Mental Health Unit at the Palestinian Ministry of Health) and Dr. Yasser Abu Jamei (Director of the Gaza Community Mental Health Programme). Following the speakers, there will be a panel discussion as well as a Q&A session including: South Africa: Prof. Ashraf Kagee Turkey: Prof. Dr.Serdar M. Değirmencioğlu Brazil: Prof. Dr. Muna Muhammad Odeh Registration/Zoom link here: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86135814190?pwd=NbLhfbvWsdWbJDqVZnjvfBP1Gs9XLM.1 Want to take Action? Our website has a list of up to date of petitions, letter writing campaigns and other ways you can express your solidarity. https://ukpalmhn.com/gaza-crisis/ Think it’s all hopeless? Look at this link celebrating the successes of the Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement on its 19th anniversary in July 2024: https://bdsmovement.net/BDS_Impacts-In-Times-Of-Genocide |
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Author: ukpalmhnadmin
UKPALMHN mailing 9 October
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| UKPALMHN Solidarity Space Monday 14 October 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 contact ukpalmhn@gmail.com if you would like a link to the meeting. Systemic Way free online event Monday 21 October at 6pm – 7.30pmm (UK time) Webinar featuring recorded interview with Dr Yo’ad Ghanadry Hakim and panel discussion, Dr Ghanadry Hakim is a Palestinian Psychotherapist who has presented at Cafe Palestine (Cafe no 4) and wrote a chapter for Psychoanalysis under Occupation edited by Lara and Stephen Sheehi https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-systemic-way-free-online-event-tickets-1033781527377 New UKPALMHN group focusing on Palestinian infants, children, and teenagers A new group is being formed for those of us who work with/write about/research into the mental health of Palestinian infants, children and teenagers. At the moment, it is made up of child psychotherapists but other child mental health professionals are welcome to join. Our focus will be specifically on babies, children and teenagers, their compromised physical, cognitive and psychological development as a result of what is happening to them and around them. We will also be asking our professional organisations to end their silence and make their voices heard on behalf of children. Please contact us via the Network email if you are interested in joining: ukpalmhn@gmail.com A Year of Lost Childhood: Palestinian children in Gaza suffer amid ongoing Israeli genocide From Defense for Children International – Palestine It has been an impossibly long year, and we are grateful for everyone who has continued organising, protesting, advocating, and more to demand justice and protection for Palestinian children. An arms embargo, coupled with urgent accountability, will save Palestinian children’s lives. If you are organizing in support of an arms embargo, let us know how DCIP can support your efforts by replying to advocacy@dcips.org https://www.dci-palestine.org/a_year_of_lost_childhood_palestinian_children_in_gaza_suffer_amid_ongoing_israeli_genocide More women and children killed in Gaza by Israeli military than any other recent conflict in a single year More women and children have been killed in Gaza by the Israeli military over the past year than the equivalent period of any other conflict over the past two decades, new Oxfam analysis has found. https://www.oxfam.org/en/press-releases/more-women-and-children-killed-gaza-israeli-military-any-other-recent-conflict Gaza’s broken lullaby: Genocidal unchilding and the impossibility of mothering An article by Lama Khouri of the Palestine-Global Mental Health Network. The article describes the devastating impact of the ongoing genocide in Gaza and the strategies used to dismantle the social and familial structures of Palestinian people, particularly targeting women and children. It sheds light on the severe conditions and the complex layers of violence that affect these mothers, who struggle to provide a semblance of normalcy and safety for their children amidst such adversity. […] By disrupting the ability to mother and nurture, the settler colonial forces aim to erase the continuity and resilience of the Palestinian identity, culture, and community. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15240657.2024.2379204 A Humiliating Charity: How scenes of aid distribution violate the dignity of Gaza’s children From Dr. Samah Jabr, Head of the Mental Health Unit at the Palestinian Ministry of Health. https://www.instagram.com/p/DAtZMFKowdf/ Where Olive Trees Weep: Processing the trauma of occupation A 45-minute video discussion The new documentary Where the Olive Trees Weep offers a rare view into the everyday experience and psychological ramifications of occupation. Filmed in 2022 in the West Bank, the film follows Palestinian journalist and therapist Ashira Darwish, Israeli journalist Amira Haas, activist Ahed Tamimi, Dr. Gabor Maté, and others. On this episode of The Chris Hedges Report, Chris Hedges speaks with Ashira Darwish and with the film’s directors and producers, Zaya Ralitza Benazzo and Maurizio Benazzo. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ol2Y8iUkz78 Israel subjects northern Gaza to one of the most violent campaigns of its genocide An unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe is imminent as the Israeli occupation tightens its siege on the Jabalia camp and Beit Lahia project in the northern Gaza Strip for the fourth consecutive day. Israel is accelerating the pace of its genocide against the Palestinians there by carrying out mass and planned killings, as well as widespread forced displacements. The international community, led by the United Nations, must act swiftly and decisively to save 10s of thousands of residents who are being subjected to one of the most violent campaigns of genocide the Strip has ever witnessed. https://reliefweb.int/report/occupied-palestinian-territory/israel-subjects-northern-gaza-one-most-violent-campaigns-its-genocide-intl-intervention-required Launch of the Social Workers’ Pledge for Palestine If you are a social worker, social care worker, social work academic, social work student, or a retired social worker, please sign and share the Social Workers’ Pledge for Palestine. You can also sign up to receive email updates. https://www.sw4palestineuk.org/ Want to take Action? Our website has a list of up to date of petitions, letter writing campaigns and other ways you can express your solidarity. https://ukpalmhn.com/gaza-crisis/ Think it’s all hopeless? Look at this link celebrating the successes of the Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement on its 19th anniversary in July 2024: https://bdsmovement.net/BDS_Impacts-In-Times-Of-Genocide |
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UKPALMHN Statement: A year of genocide-decades of impunity, plus other news
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| UKPALMHN Solidarity Space Monday 7 October 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 contact ukpalmhn@gmail.com if you would like a link to the meeting. National March for Palestine Saturday 5 October – Assemble 12 noon in Russell Square, Central London One Year On – End the Genocide in Gaza – Stop Arming Israel https://palestinecampaign.org/events/national-demo-for-palestine-5-october-2024/ The UK-Palestine Mental Health Network banner will be at the march. All are welcome to join us. We will meet at 12:00 noon at: Bloomsbury Square Gardens, London WC1A 2PJ This is the same location where we have assembled for previous marches from Russell Square. There is a map showing our assembly point at the end of this email. UK-Palestine Mental Health Network statement A year of genocide: decades of impunity The statement has also been signed by 10 partner organisations. As mental health practitioners, we take stock at this juncture of the impact of a year of continuous bombardment, killing, catastrophic injury, displacement, starvation and disease inflicted on the people of Gaza … The full text is available at the end of this mailing and at this link: https://ukpalmhn.com/resources/a-year-of-genocide-decades-of-impunity/ Unbearable suffering: mental health consequences of the October 2023 Israeli military assault on the Gaza Strip This is a new British Medical Journal Article. The authors include a member of the UK-Palestine Mental Health Network and colleagues, most of whom have spoken at previous Cafe Palestines. The onslaught on Gaza is leading to catastrophic psychological consequences which will not be limited to the short term and to those directly affected, but will have long-term, intergenerational effects. This commentary argues that to understand trauma responses among Gazans, we need to go beyond individual illness and, instead, link the biomedical sphere with the political sphere through the concept of social suffering and, thereby, expose the socio-political conditions of life and the collective trauma-inducing nature of the Israeli military occupation and repression. Addressing these complex trauma responses requires approaches that bring together the political, social and personal-level components of mental health with a focus on three factors: safety and allyship; the right to agency and acknowledgement, accountability and reparations. https://gh.bmj.com/content/9/9/e014835 Holy Redemption: Stealing Palestinian Land 55-minute world exclusive investigative documentary by TRT, a Turkish public broadcast service. The shocking, impactful documentary – with much undercover footage – unveils the violent fanaticism of armed illegal Jewish settlers who aim to uproot Palestinians from the occupied West Bank. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mF6B5UVupyA Palestinian trauma, healing and olive trees 40-minute Middle East Monitor conversation with Ashira Darwish, one of the producers of ‘Where the Olive Trees Weep’, a powerful documentary about the struggles and resilience of the Palestinian people living under Israeli occupation. She explains that Palestinians aren’t suffering from post traumatic stress disorder, there’s been no ‘post’ for them as they continue to live under occupation and colonialism. “Ongoing stress disorder” is what they experience daily. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H1m4B_HyPjY Voice notes from Gaza A moving 10-minute video In 2023, Dr Iain Overton taught a group of students in Gaza living with disabilities how to tell their stories on social media. A year on, their University lies in ruins, they are all refugees and one of them is dead. This is their story. https://x.com/iainoverton/status/1839629049301233960 Israel is torturing & abusing Palestinian prisoners, international pressure is urgently needed An article by an advocate from Addameer, the leading Palestinian prisoner support and human rights association. Since October 7, Addameer has documented a dramatic increase in the number of arbitrary arrests and detentions, the use and intensity of violence, and the gravity of the crimes committed against Palestinian detainees. In almost a year, over 10,000 Palestinians have been arrested, and the number detained by the Israeli Occupation grew from over 5,000 to 9,900. 3,332 of the detainees are under administrative detention, which means that the occupation’s military court can hold any Palestinian infinitely (no matter age or gender) for up to 6 months without any evidence or charge against them. https://www.newarab.com/opinion/tortured-abused-we-mustnt-forget-about-palestinian-prisoners Mental Health workshop for activists Thursday 10 October from 7.00-9.00 pm at Palestine House, 113 High Holborn, London WC1V 6JJ (Tickets cost £17) In observance of World Mental Health Day on 10 October, join Richmond and Kingston PSC at Palestine House for an empowering and interactive workshop. This special workshop will explore the intersections of mental health and activism, creating a safe space for activists to reflect on their own mental health needs and understand the role of solidarity in their movements. It will be led by Psychotherapist Mustafa Jayyousi, who is a Palestinian activist and psychotherapist/NLP coach. https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/mental-health-workshop-for-activists-with-psychotherapist-mustafa-jayyousi-tickets-1014476846557 Palestine: Repair & Return Az Theatre (London) and Theatre for Everybody (Gaza) will be presenting three performances in the series called Palestine: Repair & Return at the P21 Gallery, 21-23 Chalton Street London NW1 1JD Thur 17 Oct at 7pm – Stories of Learning and Teaching Thur 31 Oct at 7pm – Stories of Women and Health Thur 21 Nov at 7pm – Stories of Water The first event (Learning and Teaching) will present voices and stories from Palestine about how Palestinians are managing to continue learning and teaching, how communities are resisting attempts at ‘scholasticide’ and the destruction of schools and universities. https://p21.gallery/news/192 Amos Trust presents Requiem Monday 21 October at 7.30pm in Central Hall, Westminster Tickets are free but you will need to register. Requiem provides a chance to stop, to mourn and to reflect. With first-hand accounts of life in Gaza during the last year written by the young writers of We Are Not Numbers and a soundscape created by acclaimed musician and producer, Brian Eno. https://www.amostrust.org/gaza-requiem Want to take Action? Our website has a list of up to date of petitions, letter writing campaigns and other ways you can express your solidarity. https://ukpalmhn.com/gaza-crisis/ Think it’s all hopeless? Look at this link celebrating the successes of the Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement on its 19th anniversary in July 2024: https://bdsmovement.net/BDS_Impacts-In-Times-Of-Genocide UK-Palestine Mental Health Network Statement A year of genocide: decades of impunity2 October 2024 We, the following organisations dedicated to supporting mental health through justice for Palestine, issue this statement on the anniversary of October 7th 2023. One year ago, on the very day of the Hamas attacks, Israel began its genocidal onslaught on the citizens of Gaza and on its entire infrastructure. Few of us then, even as we witnessed bloodthirsty calls for annihilation from Israel’s politicians, could have predicted that in October 2024, Gaza would still be under remorseless bombardment, and its citizens under constant threat of permanent displacement and dispersal. The consequences of this lethal year for the long term physical and mental health of the citizens of Gaza and the impact on the functioning of its communities is incalculable. As mental health practitioners, we share our profound outrage, sorrow and collective shame at the enormity of what has been and continues to be inflicted on the people of Gaza. We take stock at this juncture of the impact of a year of continuous bombardment, killing, catastrophic injury, displacement, starvation and disease. While every citizen of Gaza has suffered immeasurably, we draw particular attention to the effects on children, Gaza’s citizens of the future. UNRWA Commissioner- General Phillipe Lazzarini has termed this a “War on children and their future” Denying children a future in their own land, stunting their growth both physically and psychologically is, and always has been, part of the logic of settler colonialism. Children in Gaza, if they survive, have been dealt a legacy of terrible injury and disabilities which will require years of rehabilitation in the absence of any resources to enable this. They have been evicted from their homes but also from childhood itself, either by the loss of parents and extended family or by having to take on adult tasks beyond their capabilities. One year is the entire life of a baby, half the life of a toddler and a quarter of the life of a four year old. A child of ten, surviving this past year, has the legacy of at least three previous lethal bombardments of their homes, families and communities. Children in Gaza, for whom education has been a major source of resilience and pride, now have no school buildings to return to and no prospect of any such provision. UNRWA, the main provider of schooling, has been under severe attack by Israel, which also denies the entrance into Gaza of adequate supplies of food. Uniquely among world conflicts, the citizens of Gaza have no means of escape from the relentless bombardment, snipers and killer drones. The wanton murder of civilians, destruction of vital infrastructure, despoliation of the built and natural environment, killing of healthcare workers and others providing aid have led to unparalleled outrage and protest in civil society worldwide. Shock at the initial genocidal onslaught has intensified with every passing month. And yet, despite rulings by the ICJ and the request by the Chief Prosecutor of the ICC to issue arrest warrants for the Israeli Prime Minister and Defence Secretary, the slaughter continues. It does so because of the active collusion and complicity of the major Western powers which, over the decades, have granted Israel absolute impunity to pursue its aggressive settler colonial expansion, land theft, ethnic cleansing, incarceration and violent suppression of human rights. As mental health practitioners we know that when no external boundaries are set and no restraints imposed on abusive and violent behaviour, the perpetrator is empowered to pursue their own interests only, objectifying and dehumanising others. As we have seen in Gaza, in the rest of occupied Palestine, in the torture chambers of Sde Teiman, and now in the massacre of Lebanese civilians, cruelty and sadism flourish in conditions of impunity. In protesting the year-long genocide in Gaza, we have called for our governments to end this impunity by demanding Israel be held accountable under international law, ending the supply of the weapons enabling this genocide and sanctioning its leaders. So far the new Labour government has made a few very modest steps in this direction and all of us in our various roles within civil society must keep up the pressure. In the past year there has been increased consciousness of the realities of Israel’s colonial, racist and apartheid practices and the complicity of world powers. Many in the ‘helping professions’ – healthcare workers, psychologists, psychotherapists, social workers – have mobilised to call for an end to collusion with Israel, to resist normalisation with its institutions and to refuse to be intimidated by strategies of silencing. One year on, we are profoundly affected by the suffering inflicted on Palestine but rather than giving into exhaustion and despair, we are more engaged than ever in the collective action required of us to abide by our professional ethics and oppose this geonicide. Gaza’s children, who are active citizens as well as victims, are asking no less of us. UK- Palestine Mental Health NetworkSocial Workers for a Free PalestineFamily Therapists for PalestineGroup Analysts for PalestinePsychoanalytic Voices for PalestineLiberate Mental HealthPsychotherapists & Counsellors for Social Responsibility(Carol Jones on behalf of) Socialist Health Alliance, LondonHealing Justice LondonCommunities for Holistic Accessible Rights-based Mental HealthThe Red Clinic The UK-Palestine Mental Health Network was founded in 2014 to promote mental wellbeing, liberation, dignity and social justice for Palestinians and all peoples and societies It is part of a worldwide movement with fifteen participating national networks. ukpalmhn@gmail.com Assembly point for UKPALMHN for National March for Palestine on Saturday 5 October at 12 noon. Bloomsbury Square Gardens, London WC1A 2PJ  |
UKPALMHN mailing 25 September
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| UKPALMHN Solidarity Space Monday 30 September 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 contact ukpalmhn@gmail.com if you would like to attend this meeting. National March for Palestine Saturday 5 October – Assemble 12 noon in Russell Square, Central London One Year On – End the Genocide in Gaza – Stop Arming Israel https://palestinecampaign.org/events/national-demo-for-palestine-5-october-2024/ “The world stands upon the edge of a knife: Either we travel collectively towards a future of just peace and lawfulness – or hurtle towards anarchy and dystopia, and a world where might makes right.” From a recent statement by 39 UN Special Rapporteurs Palestine: Impact of the conflict on mental health and psychosocial support needs in Gaza ACAPS Thematic Report from September 2024 ACAPS is an independent analytical voice helping humanitarian workers, influencers, fundraisers, and donors make better-informed decisions and respond more effectively to disasters. ACAPS: https://www.acaps.org/en/ Link to report: https://reliefweb.int/report/occupied-palestinian-territory/acaps-thematic-report-palestine-impact-conflict-mental-health-and-psychosocial-support-needs-gaza-03-september-2024 No safe place in mind: mental health and trauma in Gaza Centre for Mental Health article from August 2024 We understand that hierarchies of global attention and care are, in fact, also products of this global inequality and we do not wish to uphold the status quo of these hierarchies through silence. https://www.centreformentalhealth.org.uk/no-safe-place-in-mind-mental-health-and-trauma-in-gaza/ Israeli killings of Palestinian children “an extremely dark place in history”, says UN The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, which monitors compliance of state parties to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, recently released its findings on six state parties to the treaty, including Israel. “The outrageous death of children is almost historically unique. This is an extremely dark place in history […] I don’t think we have seen before a violation that is so massive as we’ve seen in Gaza. These are extremely grave violations that we do not often see” Bragi Gudbrandsson, vice chair of the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), told reporters. https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israeli-killings-children-gaza-historically-unprecedented-says-un-committee Targeting childhood: Palestinian children killed by Israeli forces and settlers in the occupied West Bank Defense for Children International – Palestine has recently issued a new report called “Targeting Childhood: Palestinian children killed by Israeli forces and settlers in the occupied West Bank.” The report details and analyses Palestinian child fatalities in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, between October 7, 2023, and July 31, 2024. Israeli forces routinely targeted Palestinian children with live ammunition and aerial attacks, prevented ambulances and paramedics from reaching wounded children, and confiscated children’s bodies in violation of international law. https://www.dci-palestine.org/targeting_childhood_palestinian_children_killed_by_israeli_forces_and_settlers_in_the_occupied_west_bank Dangerous skin diseases add to the turmoil of war for children in Gaza [4-minute news item – Contains distressing content] Israel’s war is wreaking a terrible toll on Gaza’s children and it’s not just bombs and bullets killing and scarring them. Forced to flee their homes, living in squalor, disease is now rampant amongst the population, including painful skin infections. https://www.channel4.com/news/dangerous-skin-diseases-add-to-the-turmoil-of-war-for-children-in-gaza UN experts warn international order on a knife’s edge Over 50 days since the International Court of Justice (ICJ) delivered its historic Advisory Opinion, declaring that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory unlawful […] States remain paralysed in the face of the seismic shift represented by the Court’s ruling and appear unwilling or unable to take the necessary steps to meet their obligations. The report includes 14 steps that States should take immediately. https://www.ohchr.org/en/statements/2024/09/un-experts-warn-international-order-knifes-edge-urge-states-comply-icj-advisory UN General Assembly resolves to sanction Israel: Pressure your government to make this a reality On September 18th, the UN General Assembly overwhelmingly voted for imposing sanctions on Israel for the first time in 42 years! The global majority affirmed that the historic ruling by the International Court of Justice triggers the legal obligation of all states to end complicity in Israel’s illegal occupation and apartheid regime. https://bdsmovement.net/UNGA-Pressure-Your-Gov-Sanction-Israel How to prevent the erasure of Palestinians Wednesday 2 October at 3pm UK time Balfour Project webinar with Tamara El-Halawani & Dr Zahira Jaser https://balfourproject.org/erasure/ Want to take Action? Our website has a list of up to date of petitions, letter writing campaigns and other ways you can express your solidarity. https://ukpalmhn.com/gaza-crisis/ Think it’s all hopeless? Look at this link celebrating the successes of the Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement on its 19th anniversary in July 2024: https://bdsmovement.net/BDS_Impacts-In-Times-Of-Genocide |
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UKPALMHN Mailing 18 September
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| National March for Palestine to the Labour Party conference Saturday 21 September at 12 noon in Liverpool End the genocide in Gaza / Stop arming Israel Assemble at: St George’s Plateau, outside Lime Street Station, Liverpool https://palestinecampaign.org/events/national-march-for-palestine-to-labour-conference/ UKPALMHN Solidarity Space Monday 23 September 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 contact ukpalmhn@gmail.com if you would like a link to this meeting. National March for Palestine Saturday 5 October in Central London More details to follow Documenting the Targeting and Destruction of the Health Sector in the Gaza Strip A major new initiative by The Institute for Palestine Studies documenting the genocide in Gaza. The platform “Documenting the Targeting and Destruction of the Health Sector in the Gaza Strip” presents accurate and detailed information about the Israeli assault on health during the genocidal war. This includes data on the attacks on healthcare facilities and health workers who have been killed, abducted, tortured, and maimed by Israeli forces during the genocide, and relevant statements by international organisations and healthcare institutions. These are complemented by original analysis by researchers and authors covering a range of issues in the targeting of the health sector, through which Israeli occupation forces have created a “war biosphere”. https://gazahcsector.palestine-studies.org/en/ Related to the new initiative by The Institute for Palestine Studies (see above) there is a one-hour Zoom meeting presenting the new platform With Dr. Ghassan Abu-Sittah, Dr. Layth Hanbali, and Jehad Abusalim. There were over 4,000 viewers of the webinar and reportedly hundreds of offers of help flooding in at the end of the presentation. https://x.com/i/broadcasts/1lDGLlqDRbaGm “Doctor, Am I In Heaven?” Treating Gaza’s wounded under Israeli genocide Deeply moving 6 minute video from Dr Mohammed Ashraf, a surgeon in Gaza, created by Palestine Deep Dive https://x.com/PDeepdive/status/1833135348051796321 Palestinian Health Ministry releases detailed list of more than 34,000 people killed in Gaza It also published a stat sheet of casualties over the same period (in Arabic)(available through the Twitter/X link in the MEE article). The first 14 pages of those killed list the age as 0 (under 1 year old) https://www.middleeasteye.net/live-blog/live-blog-update/palestinian-health-ministry-releases-detailed-list-more-34000-people Rape, torture and murder: Inside Israel’s concentration camps When Israelis rioted in July in support of 10 soldiers accused of gang-raping a Palestinian prisoner, there was disgust and shock around the world. But the horrifying sexual attack was far from an aberration. First-hand testimonies reveal that Israeli personnel are systematically inflicting rape and other forms of sexual violence, torture and cruel abuse on thousands of Palestinians held in a network of prison camps. https://electronicintifada.net/content/rape-torture-and-murder-inside-israels-concentration-camps/48386 Israel’s use of sexual and gender-based violence against Palestinians From The Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention Based on reports from the United Nations, B’Tselem, Euro-Med Monitor, and other sources, Israel has used sexual and gender-based violence in a systematic manner against Palestinians in detention, at checkpoints, and during encounters in Gaza since 7 October 2023. The use of sexualized violence against Palestinians appears to have increased dramatically since 7 October. https://www.lemkininstitute.com/statements-new-page/the-genocidal-dimensions-of-israel%E2%80%99s-use-of-sexual-and-gender-based-violence-(sgbv)-against-palestinians 2025–2026 PARC Research Fellowships for Palestinian scholars focusing on Gaza The Palestinian American Research Center (PARC) announces the 26th annual PARC Palestinian research fellowship competition for Palestinian scholars focusing on Gaza. Applicants must be Palestinian doctoral students or Palestinian scholars who have earned their PhD. All Palestinians may apply regardless of their country of residence or ID. https://dev.parc-us-pal.org/fellowships-for-palestinians/ London Palestine Film Festival 2024 Friday 15 – Friday 29 November 18 separate events spread across 9 different venues. Given the urgent circumstances in the ongoing war, we open this year’s festival with an exclusive, commissioned live performance based on true events; in A Grain of Sand, theatre director Elias Matar presents an experience where imagination is crucial to navigate the violence. Closing LPFF 2024 we will have a multi-cinema screening of From Ground Zero, a portmanteau of films made in Gaza over the past year. These two sessions bookend an eclectic selection of cinema from award-winning titles to selections of short films. https://www.palestinefilm.org.uk/ The UK-Palestine Mental Health Network is part of a growing international movement of Palestine Mental Health Networks under the umbrella of the Palestinian-led Palestinian-Global Mental Health Network (www.pgmhn.org/) |
“When I die, will they put me in a grave with my mum and dad?”
National March for Palestine Saturday 21 September at 12 noon in Liverpool Assemble at St Georges Hall Plateau, opposite Lime Street Station and march to the gates of the Labour party conference The role of Palestinian schools in healing childhood wounds: psychological support for war-affected generations A short opinion piece by Samah Jabr, Head of Mental Health Unit, Palestinian Ministry of Health The article covers areas in which schools can promote the mental health of children and practical recommendations for Palestinian schools. The original article is in Arabic but many modern browsers, including Chrome, offer a simple feature to translate the page into English. https://www.alquds.com/ar/posts/133532 |
| Can You See Me? Arab Immigrants’ Quests for Identity and Belonging An article on Psychotherapy.net by Lama Khouri who co-founded the Palestine-Global Mental Health Network and sits on the board of the USA-Palestine Mental Health Network. In this in-depth piece, a Palestinian analyst shares her poignant experiences as an immigrant, and the personal and professional challenges they brought. https://www.psychotherapy.net/article/can-you-see-me-arab-quest-for-identity Two volunteers of the Palestine Trauma Centre (UK) killed in Gaza PTC (UK) has announced the tragic killing of two of its volunteers who were working with children in Gaza. https://ukpalmhn.com/resources/two-palestine-trauma-centre-uk-volunteers-killed/ Palestine In Mental Health – calling all mental health workers, have you felt managed, disciplined or silenced on Palestine? From Tarek Younis, Racial Justice Researcher, Healing Justice LDN Please participate in an interview to explore the racial politics of our mental health systems/ experiences of racism and how this has impacted mental health workers. Share challenges, collate and build a picture of this experience within these systems. Full confidentiality and anonymity is ensured. Nothing will shared without consent. You will receive £30 payment for your participation. To join send an email to tarek@healingjusticeldn.org Israel wages massive military attack on Palestinians in the illegally occupied West Bank, under cover of its Gaza genocide The Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement calls for maximizing grassroots and civil society pressure on all states, the United Nations, and regional bodies. Channel your rage, frustration, and grief into effective, strategic BDS action and build pressure and people power to stop the genocide and to eventually help Palestinians dismantle Israel’s 76-year-old regime of settler-colonial apartheid, the root cause of this oppression and unspeakable violence. https://bdsmovement.net/Israel-Wages-Massive-Military-Attack-West-Bank Urgent action needed to protect Palestinian farm The Tent of Nations near Bethlehem is one of the last Palestinian hilltop farms in the West Bank that is still in Palestinian hands. The farm is under immediate and growing threat from settler activity. The Nassar family that has owned the farm since Ottoman times has two crucial court cases coming up on Wednesday 11 September and Tuesday 8 October. The Friends of Tent of Nations UK has produced a briefing pack and template letter to MPs to raise awareness about the farm and the upcoming court cases. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1FxFuQyWPEYcOk0peDRdbdvSsNupnqgvPRjUyTRKbjaA/edit Questions from Gaza’s children Members of the Palestine Trauma Centre (UK) team in Gaza have spoken about the questions their children ask of them as they endure nearly eleven months of bombardment, death, injury, starvation and displacement. We asked if they would like to send these questions out to the wider world and they have responded with the attached list from children. They are of course utterly heart-breaking and we want to do them justice and show our accountability to the children in whatever ways we can, by sending them to our elected representatives, to all children’s charities and through our international networks. Please add your voices. Please add your voices. Those of you who work with children will, we are sure, have ideas about how to share them with colleagues and with mental health directorates. Please share any thoughts you have about how to support this campaign to demand an immediate ceasefire to safeguard the children of Gaza who are being forced to confront and question such iniquities. |
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Chronic traumatic stress disorder and Psychoanalytic Voices for Palestine
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| UKPALMHN Action Half-Hour Monday 22 April at 13:00 UK time An informal space to share thoughts and feelings, and to channel these into actions that we take together. If you would like a link to this meeting, please contact: ukpalmhn@gmail.com All of the actions for this event and previous events can be found on: https://ukpalmhn.com/gaza-crisis/ ‘Chronic traumatic stress disorder’: the Palestinian psychologist challenging western definitions of trauma Chair of the Palestinian ministry of health’s mental health unit says the clinical definition of PTSD does not fit the reality in Gaza https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/14/mental-health-palestine-children ‘Psychoanalytic Voices for Palestine’ We reported in a previous mailing that a group of BPC members, now called Psychoanalytic Voices for Palestine’ (PVP) had ‘issued a statement ‘Call for psychoanalytic professionals to address the human catastrophe in Gaza’. A response to the PVP’s Statement appeared in a recent issue of Jewish News, entitled ‘Offer practical help, not letters, says expert’. The ‘expert’, ‘leading Jewish psychologist, David Cohen’, advises that rather than campaigning to stop the genocide, PVP ‘would be better to offer counselling services to Gazan residents’. Enough said. Evidence of the need to challenge pro-Zionist bias within the profession continues to mount. The journal Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy recently published an issue on the theme of ‘reintegrating dissociation’ into therapeutic practice. The editorial only makes references to Israeli victims of October 7th but without any historical context or reference to the ongoing, massive toll of dead and maimed civilians in Gaza. As such, it provides a clear example of the extent to which dissociation distorts psychoanalytic thinking. Derek Summerfield has written a letter to the editor, Paul Cundy, in protest at the apparently unconscious mix-up of proper professional concerns with blatant Israeli propaganda. It is reproduced here. Psychoanalytic Voices for Palestine, is organising a two-hour evening meeting, in person and online, on May 10th, at the Frontline Club in London. Details and tickets here. War on Gaza: The loneliness of grief for Palestinians in the UK An Opinion piece in Middle East Eye by Network member Gwyn Daniel Being told that grieving for your slaughtered family threatens the social order and seeing their killers’ flag light up government buildings is the appalling reality for UK Palestinians https://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/war-gaza-loneliness-grief-palestinians-uk Dr. Ghassan Abu-Sittah: ‘Tomorrow is a Palestinian day’ The speech by Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah when installed as Glasgow University Rector following his landslide election with 80% of the vote. This was on April 11, the day before he was denied entry to Germany. For us, all of us, part of our resistance to the erasure of genocide is to talk about tomorrow in Gaza, to plan for the healing of the wounds of Gaza tomorrow. We will own tomorrow. Tomorrow will be a Palestinian day. https://mondoweiss.net/2024/04/dr-ghassan-abu-sittah-tomorrow-is-a-palestinian-day Samsung Next Withdraws From Israel Samsung Next, the innovation arm of the Korean technology giant, Samsung, is shutting down its Tel Aviv operations, yet another strong indicator of the dramatically declining confidence in the Israeli economy. https://bdsmovement.net/news/samsung-next-withdraws-from-israel The War on Gaza’s Art (webinar organised by The Amos Trust) Tuesday 23 April at 6pm (UK) The war on Gaza is a war against its art and its artists. Our panel will discuss the war’s impact and attack on Gaza’s culture and hear more about the Palestine Museum’s ‘This is not an Exhibition’ display of art from the Shababeek and Eltiqa galleries in Gaza following their destruction. https://www.amostrust.org/war-on-gazas-art Hasbara Tracker – Debunking Israeli propaganda We’re working on documenting and debunking claims made by the Israeli regime during its most recent — and unprecedented — genocidal campaign in Gaza since 7th Oct. The Israeli settler-colony continues to spread disinformation to manufacture consent for ethnic cleansing and land theft, as it has since the Nakba. Our aim is to centralise this information. https://hasbaratracker.com/ HEROES Recent pictures of the UNRWA Psychological and Social Support team in the central region of Gaza organised an entertainment event for children at one of the shelters in Deir al-Balah. This event, titled ‘Living Despite the Pain’, aimed to give children a ray of hope, joy, and celebrate Eid al-Fitr amidst the harsh conditions they are experiencing. It included a variety of interactive games, artistic workshops, small theatrical performances, as well as providing psychological and emotional support for the children.     Activities of Days of Joy at PTC(UK) during the war on Gaza This is a recent 5-minute video celebrating the ongoing work of the Palestine Trauma Centre (UK) (https://www.palestinetraumacentre.uk/) Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5m9FiOiYkM  |
“A Sea of Misery”: Gaza is unlike anything I’ve ever seen, says NGO Head/ex-CNN journalist
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| National Day of Action – Full Ceasefire Now – Stop the Genocide in Gaza Saturday 13 April Full list of local actions: https://palestinecampaign.org/events/day-of-action-for-palestine-stop-the-genocide-in-gaza/ London March for Palestine – Stop Arming Israel (part of national Day of Action) Saturday 13 April at 12:00 – Assemble in Russell Square https://palestinecampaign.org/events/london-march-for-palestine/ UKPALMHN Action Half-Hour Monday 15 April at 13:00 UK time An informal space to share thoughts and feelings, and to channel these into actions that we take together. Please contact ukpalmhn@gmail.com if you would like a link to this meeting. All of the actions for this event and previous events can be found on: https://ukpalmhn.com/gaza-crisis/ Where does the Palestinian National Movement go from here? Thursday 18 April at 15:00 – 17:00 (UK time) A webinar presented by the Arab Center Washington DC In-person, via Zoom and livestreamed free through the website With Hanan Ashrawi, Mustafa Barghouti, Leila Farsakh and Khalil Shikaki Arab Center Washington DC is organizing this keynote webinar with prominent and experienced Palestinian activist leaders and academics to discuss the future of Palestine at this critical juncture for the Palestinian people. https://arabcenterdc.org/event/where-does-the-palestinian-national-movement-go-from-here/ “A Sea of Misery”: Gaza is unlike anything I’ve ever seen, says NGO Head/ex-CNN journalist Democracy Now interview from Tuesday 9 April Arwa Damon returned on Monday 8 April from a humanitarian trip to Gaza. She speaks about the mental health trauma of children and adults in Gaza. She also explains why aid is still not reaching those who need it. She is an award-winning journalist and the founder of the International Network for Aid Relief and Assistance, a non-profit currently providing medical and mental healthcare to children in Gaza. She previously spent 18 years at CNN, including as a senior international correspondent. https://www.democracynow.org/2024/4/9/arwa_damon_gaza Palestinians and the world must not lose hope by Mariam Barghouti, Palestinian American writer based in Ramallah Those mobilising against the Israeli genocide face exhaustion and burnout. This is the result of Israel’s ‘war of attrition’. [but] Recognise this: Palestinians are not buried yet, and while the destruction is massive, so is the number of survivors with dreams to pursue, miracles to witness, and a faith in humanity to be re-instilled. Amid all the destruction there is life, and Palestinians are putting up one hell of a fight for it. https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2024/4/6/palestinians-and-the-world-must-not-lose-hope ‘Lavender’: The AI machine directing Israel’s bombing spree in Gaza From Palestinian-Israeli +972 magazine building on previous work by the same organisation. The Israeli army has marked tens of thousands of Gazans as suspects for assassination, using an AI targeting system with little human oversight and a permissive policy for casualties. https://www.972mag.com/lavender-ai-israeli-army-gaza/ https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/03/israel-gaza-ai-database-hamas-airstrikes The Death of Amr From the Chris Hedges report On the morning Amr Abdallah was killed, he woke before dawn to say his Ramadan prayers with his father, mother, two younger brothers and aunt, in an open field in southern Gaza.[…] It was dark. They made their way back to their tents. Their old life was gone — their village, Al-Qarara, their house — built with the money Amr’s father saved during the 30 years he worked in the Persian Gulf — their orchards, their school, the local mosque and the town’s cultural museum with artifacts dating from 4000 BC https://chrishedges.substack.com/p/the-death-of-amr?r=2otfwk Genocide will continue — even if the bombs stopped tomorrow. The Israeli government’s determination to deepen the crisis in Gaza means that we may be looking at even more cataclysmic levels of death and hunger in months to come. https://www.jewishvoiceforpeace.org/2024/04/04/if-the-war-ends-tomorrow/ Since 7 October, my therapy patients have asked themselves: who are our people? Six months later, Gaza’s destruction has exposed the power – and danger – of our fundamental need to belong https://www.theguardian.com/world/ng-interactive/2024/apr/07/israel-gaza-identity-october-7 Tackling the severe escalation in Israel’s torture of Palestinians A briefing prepared by War on Want and the Council for Arab-British Understanding to support parliamentary and public meetings involving the Palestinian human rights organisations Adalah, Addameer and Defense of Children International-Palestine. https://caabu.org/sites/default/files/resources/Tackling%20torture%20of%20Palestinians%20by%20Israel%20WoWCaabu2703.pdf Video of a recent briefing to the Britain-Palestine All Party Parliamentary Group: https://youtu.be/iZcQUfR7J-E |
Ecocide in Gaza plus Prof Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian reinstated
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| UKPALMHN Action Half-Hour Monday 8 April at 1 pm UK time An informal space to share thoughts and feelings, and to channel these into actions that we take together. This Action Half-Hour will highlight the campaign that the UK should re-institute funding to the Palestinian relief agency, UNRWA. Please contact ukpalmhn@gmail.com if you would like a link to this meeting All of the actions for this event and previous events can be found on: https://ukpalmhn.com/gaza-crisis/ Psychoanalysis and the Crisis in Gaza Friday 10 May at 6-8 pm (online and in person) The Frontline Club, Norfolk Place, London W2 W2 1QJ Introduction: Martin Kemp Main Speaker: Karim Dajani Discussant: Dr David Bell Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/psychoanalysis-and-the-crisis-in-gaza-online-in-person-tickets-871594752367 This event is organised by a group of psychoanalytic clinicians who issued a Statement in January 2024 entitled ‘A Call for Psychoanalytic Professionals to address the human catastrophe in Gaza’ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QcFqIFhjL38kCRYDy6WMo3oJ300Yf31GTxXpGNknVHM/edit. This has over 250 signatures from British Psychoanalytic Council members: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1fruVb-Sb3sAT2IgWHQPbLfvU5lyXpgDSXgHTI2wWna4/edit?pli=1 Doctor recounts harrowing shifts working at one of Gaza’s last standing hospitals Dr Tanya Haj-Hassan has been recording her experiences working in intensive care at one of the enclaves few remaining hospitals, Al-Aqsa https://www.itv.com/news/2024-03-28/doctor-recounts-grueling-shifts-working-at-one-of-gazas-last-standing-hospitals ‘I lost hope with the Home Office’: Palestinians fundraise to evacuate family in Gaza Hundreds of GoFundMe campaigns set up after Home Office refuses visas or Ukrainian-style entry scheme https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/29/i-lost-hope-with-the-home-office-palestinians-fundraise-to-evacuate-family-in-gaza ‘Ecocide in Gaza’: does scale of environmental destruction amount to a war crime? Exclusive: Satellite analysis revealed to the Guardian shows farms devastated and nearly half of the territory’s trees razed. Alongside mounting air and water pollution, experts says Israel’s onslaught on Gaza’s ecosystems has made the area unlivable https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/mar/29/gaza-israel-palestinian-war-ecocide-environmental-destruction-pollution-rome-statute-war-crimes-aoe 10 Year Anniversary Video for the Palestine Institute for Biodiversity and Sustainability at Bethlehem University A 5-minute video highlighting the successes of the Institute https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qt8OTGoS198 ‘Famine is setting in’: Top UN court orders Israel to stop blocking Gaza aid Additional provisional measures ordered by the ICJ contradict Israel’s claim that it does not hinder humanitarian aid deliveries to the besieged Palestinian enclave https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/international-court-orders-israel-facilitate-entry-food-gaza Anatomy of a Genocide: Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, Francesca Albanese By analysing the patterns of violence and Israel’s policies in its onslaught on Gaza, this report concludes that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the threshold indicating Israel’s commission of genocide is met. One of the key findings is that Israel’s executive and military leadership and soldiers have intentionally distorted jus in bello principles, subverting their protective functions, in an attempt to legitimize genocidal violence against the Palestinian people. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/3/26/un-expert-accuses-israel-of-several-acts-of-genocide-in-gaza Report: https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/hrbodies/hrcouncil/sessions-regular/session55/advance-versions/a-hrc-55-73-auv.pdf NYT refutes previous claim of ‘Hamas rape’ on 7 Oct In startling news, on Wednesday 26 March, the New York Times refuted its own claim that Hamas fighters raped two young Israeli girls during the Operation Al-Aqsa Flood on 7 October. These claims have been used in subsequent allegations about sexual violence carried out by Hamas.The new report is called ‘Medic’s Account of Sexual Assaults Is Undercut by Israeli Soldier’s Video’ but this is a paid-for link so information is provided from a different source: https://thecradle.co/articles/nyt-refutes-previous-claim-of-hamas-rape-on-7-oct ACTION CORNER … Hebrew University reinstates Palestinian Prof. Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian following outcry Hebrew University in Jerusalem has reinstated Professor Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian, the internationally renowned feminist Palestinian professor, who was suspended earlier this month after saying in an interview Israel was committing genocide in Gaza. https://www.democracynow.org/2024/3/29/headlines/hebrew_university_reinstates_palestinian_prof_nadera_shalhoub_kevorkian_following_outcry Palestine Action permanently shut Elbit down in Tamworth After sustained direct action, the Israeli weapons maker was forced to sell due to increased security costs which cut their profits by 75%. The new owners wrote to Palestine Action to confirm the factory is no longer associated with Elbit and have discontinued all arms manufacturing contracts. https://twitter.com/Pal_action/status/1773367473921761323?s=20 Israel lobbyists tried to cancel an event on mental health and Palestine – but failed Israel lobbyists targeted a sold-out event on Palestine at London’s Freud Museum earlier this month, but ultimately failed to stop the discussion from going ahead in an important moment for Palestine solidarity within a divided discipline. https://novaramedia.com/2024/03/28/israel-lobbyists-tried-to-cancel-an-event-on-mental-health-and-palestine-but-failed/ |
As brutal war rages and famine looms, look at pictures of Gaza and keep saying: ‘this is not normal’
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| National Demonstration: Ceasefire Now – Stop the Genocide in Gaza! Saturday 30 March – Assemble 12:00 at Russell Square – Marching to Trafalgar Square https://palestinecampaign.org/events/national-demonstration-ceasefire-now-stop-the-genocide-in-gaza-2/ The UK-Palestine Mental Health Network banner will be at the march. All are welcome to join us. We will meet at 11:45 am at Bloomsbury Square Gardens, Great Russell Street end, London WC1A 2PJ The next UKPALMHN Action Half-Hour will be on Monday 8 April at 1 pm UK time In the interim period, all actions for the Action Half-Hours (including any new or urgent actions) can be found at: https://ukpalmhn.com/gaza-crisis/ As brutal war rages and famine looms, look at pictures of Gaza and keep saying: ‘this is not normal’ Of all the threats to those suffering, one of the most frightening is that we tire – and their plight becomes background noise https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/mar/25/war-famine-gaza-israel ‘Man-made hell on earth’: a Canadian doctor on his medical mission to Gaza A gripping, well-told and utterly heart-rending account of a recent 10-day stint in Gaza by a Canadian surgeon working for the UN. Gaza is basically a man-made hell on earth right now, is what it is, and I think that it’s never too late. If the Israeli invasion of Rafah occurs, it’ll be catastrophic. We have to do all that we can to stop that from happening, put all the pressure we can on our politicians, on the powers that be, to stop this from happening because the health care and the human toll will be unimaginable. https://theintercept.com/2024/03/23/intercepted-doctor-gaza-interview/ ‘Man-made starvation’: the obstacles to Gaza aid deliveries – visual guide https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/22/obstacles-to-gaza-aid-deliveries-visual-guide US doubles down on defunding UNRWA — despite flimsy allegations Congress passed a one-year ban on UNRWA funds even as several Western countries and the EU have resumed funding to the U.N. agency that aids Palestinians. The bill also: approves $3.8 billion funding to Israel; and contains a long-standing provision that would limit aid to the Palestinian Authority, which governs the occupied West Bank, if ‘the Palestinians (sic) initiate an International Criminal Court (ICC) judicially authorized investigation, or actively supports such an investigation, that subjects Israeli nationals to an investigation for alleged crimes against Palestinians.’ https://theintercept.com/2024/03/22/gaza-unrwa-funding-congress/ Statement from the Head of UNRWA on Sunday 24 March Despite the tragedy unfolding under our watch, the Israeli Authorities informed the UN that they will no longer approve any food convoys to the north. This is outrageous and makes it intentional to obstruct lifesaving assistance during a man-made famine. https://twitter.com/UNLazzarini/status/1771917857598693549 Gaza solidarity played major role in renewed US push to ban TikTok – WSJ The US House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a bill that could see TikTok banned in the United States. According to a report published by the Wall Street Journal, one of the reasons behind the renewed urgency to pass the bill could be attributed to Washington’s concerns about the way TikTok users interact with content regarding the Israeli genocide in Gaza. https://www.palestinechronicle.com/gaza-solidarity-played-major-role-in-renewed-us-push-to-ban-tiktok-wsj/ As Gaza is destroyed, Israel is killing dozens of children in the West Bank A 12-year-old Palestinian boy was shot while lighting a firework. ‘Cases like these happen quite regularly, but no one’s hearing about them,’ according to the Israeli rights group B’Tselem https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/mar/23/israel-killing-children-west-bank Finally… A poem called Palestinian by Ibrahim Nasrallah (trans. Huda Fakhreddine) [The first four lines:] I was silent and nothing came of it. I spoke and nothing came of it. I cursed, I apologized, and nothing came of it. I was busy, I pretended to be busy…and nothing […] https://proteanmag.com/2024/03/24/palestinian/ |
الشبكة البريطانية الفلسطينية للصحة النفسية 