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The Occupied Palestinian Territory is enveloped in a spiral of unstoppable violence, with stories Palestinians and other witnesses relay adding new depths to atrocities the world has witnessed since the beginning of Israel’s assault on Gaza over six months ago, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Francesca Albanese said today. “The pace and intensity with which this violence has spread to the rest of the occupied territory confirms that no Palestinian is safe under Israel’s unfettered control,” Albanese said, concluding a visit to Egypt and Jordan. The Special Rapporteur said Israel had once again arbitrarily denied her access to the Occupied Palestinian Territory, compelling her to report on the situation of Palestinians under occupation from neighbouring states. Albanese said her visit demonstrated that the situation in Gaza is worse than previously assessed, with serious and multi-layered long-term implications. Most victims she met had endured catastrophic injuries, witnessed family members killed and experienced the effects of Israel’s destruction of Gaza’s health infrastructure, even after 26 January 2024, when the International Court of Justice (ICJ) issued a ruling ordering Israel to prevent genocide in Gaza. Patients that previously arrived in Egypt primarily with explosive and war injury-related symptoms are now joined by patients with chronic diseases and/or malnutrition, especially children, arising from Israel’s intentional humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. “Photos from a mere eight months ago show a chubby-cheeked 8-year-old Hamid, now rake thin and spending his days in excruciating pain due to pancreatitis developed through the harsh conditions of the siege,” the Special Rapporteur said. “Those who have left Gaza come out fractured and wracked by ‘survivors’ guilt’ and severe trauma,” Albanese said. “Just 50 kilometers away from the Gaza Strip, crucial, life-sustaining aid and goods, including water desalination equipment, first aid kits, oxygen cylinders and portable toilets – paid for by taxpayers across the world – languish in warehouses, barred entry into Gaza on the pretext of use by combatants.” “Humanitarian measures implemented so far – airdrops and maritime corridors – are a mere palliative for what is desperately needed and legally due,” the expert said. “These measures are grossly inadequate to alleviate the humanitarian catastrophe that Israel’s assault has created.” “At this point, Israel has reneged on its international obligations to a degree that warrants a call for sanctions,” Albanese said.

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I was asked to help share Rawan's fundraiser. Rawan is a young Palestinian mother and psychologist urgently raising money to evacuate she and her family from Gaza. Rawan has only raised €1,976 out of her €40,000 goal so far, and the IOF's planned invasion of Rafah is imminent. Please share and donate, and if you can't donate, please still share!

From Rawan's GFM:

My name is Rawan Nasser Ghayadah, and I am 29 years old. I am a divorced mother to the most beautiful child in my life, named Youssef. I work as a psychologist, helping adults and children overcome their psychological and behavioral issues. My life used to be filled with happiness, surrounded by my family. My sisters were attending universities every day, and my younger sister excelled in her studies. However, her dream of attending university was shattered. I used to see my son, Youssef, every week, and we would go out to the best places and restaurants in Gaza. I went to work every day, helping people with love. After finishing my work, I would attend my university classes, where I was at the top of my class. But unfortunately, everything changed dramatically on October 7th.

That day is unforgettable in our lives. We woke up and heard people shouting outside at 2 a.m., screaming that they want to bomb us. We woke up terrified, running inside the house while my siblings and my little sister were screaming and crying. The whole building shook, and people were running in the streets not knowing where to go. Suddenly, there was a loud bombing sound in the middle of the street, shaking everything, and people started screaming even louder.

The shrapnel scattered in the street, and people in their homes were burning, their screams still echoing in my head. I couldn't get over it until now. Our house was destroyed, and people burned in their homes. Three journalists were martyred in front of our eyes and the eyes of our children. We stayed awake until morning.

Then came the decision to evacuate us to the south. We had nowhere to go, and we spent a whole night with our children on the street. Then a friend of ours took us in and hosted us at his house.

After a few days passed, we went through some of the hardest nights. People started giving us mattresses, blankets, clothes for us and our children. We lived through very difficult days.

And then, just a few days later, I received the news of the martyrdom of my first friend. It was like a thunderbolt. My lifelong companion and work colleague had passed away.

And the first month passed since her martyrdom. I received the news of the martyrdom of my second friend and her son. Ninety people from her family perished.

I experienced a psychological shock and lived days without eating, just crying.

I tried to overcome the situation, but then I received the news of the martyrdom of my childhood friend, my companion, my soulmate. I felt like my soul had left and my back was broken with her death.

After that, I lost control of my life. I lost my home, my friends, I was displaced, and I was deprived of seeing my child because of the war.

Now, we are appealing for donations to save my family from the war and to leave Gaza as soon as possible. The situation here is dire, and we urgently need support to ensure the safety and well-being of my son and myself. Your contributions will help us find shelter, access basic necessities, and ultimately escape the ongoing violence that has shattered our lives. Please, donate generously to help us rebuild our lives and secure a brighter future away from the horrors of war.

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Palestinian patients found in a mass grave with catheters still attached.

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The latest numbers coming from Gaza state that there are about 77,575 injured Palestinians as of April 28, 2024.

I honestly see this number as a very humble one, but regardless, I said this in 2014 and it bears repeating: considering the types of weapons Israel is using in Gaza, the overwhelming majority of these injuries are severe and critical. So when we say that well over 77,000 people are injured in Gaza, we're talking about tens of thousands of people who have ended up with a lifelong disability. Thousands of amputees with no proper care. Thousands who will not be able to walk or see again. Many won't be able to go back to school or work again. Burn victims without the means to reduce or take the pain away. Many on life support and many more who will not even make it.

So many open wounds, both literally and figuratively, that we need to keep present in our conversation about Gaza.

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If you're lamenting the fact that you used to be able to shoot through a 500-page novel in like a day when you were in middle school and now you can't, it's worth bearing in mind that a big part of that is because when you were in middle school, your reading comprehension sucked. Yes, mental health and the stresses of adult life can definitely be factors, but it's also the case that reading is typically more effortful as an adult because you've learned to Ponder The Implications. The material isn't just skimming over the surface of your brain anymore, and some of the spoons you used to spend on maximising your daily page count are now spent on actually thinking about what you're reading!

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I must not mock Gen Alpha. Mocking Gen Alpha is the mind killer. Mocking Gen Alpha is the little-death that brings total generational solidarity obliteration. I will engage with Gen Alpha lovingly. I will permit them to be cringe. And when they grow up I will turn my eye to their accomplishments. Where mocking has gone there will be nothing. Only generational solidarity remains

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April 28, 2024 - An unintentionally funny video by a zionist propagandist shows off some good organisation and discipline at the UCLA encampment for Palestine.

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Internet Safety

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learning that people want you in their lives is a skill you can develop if it does not come naturally

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Another baby was attacked by Israel. Torturing a baby? They're monsters, I hate all Israeli genocidaires and they supporters.

Zionism is a terrorism!

STOP zionism!

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btw something im working on learning is that disabled is something that im allowed to be in public.

im allowed to lay down on the living room floor if im in middle of a conversation & enjoying it but feeling too lightheaded to sit up. im allowed to sit at the table to do meal prep and to sit on a stool at the stove to cook. im allowed to use my cane while i run errands.

if people are uncomfortable with my disabled existence, it’s their responsibility to work on that, it’s not my responsibility to try to hide my disability from the view of abled people.

i shouldn’t be relegated to my bedroom or to my house or to places where no one else will be just to have accommodations. im allowed to just exist & not have to pretend to be able bodied for the comfort & convenience of others.