Gaza Update
As the world's attention shifts to the Persian Gulf, Gaza has vanished from the news even as the killing continues, a U.N. assessment finds development has been set back 77 years, and Israel imposes disarmament terms Hamas never agreed to.
Rev. J. Mark Davidson
6/24/20263 min read
For understandable reasons, attention has been riveted on the turmoil in the Persian Gulf. Recent events are roiling the global economy, driving an unprecedented wedge between Washington and Tel Aviv, and reshaping geopolitics in the Middle East. Gaza, on the other hand, has largely dropped out of the news cycle. Having dominated the consciousness of millions for twenty-four excruciating months, now it’s as if Gaza no longer exists. Of course it does, and we devote this Director’s Note to providing an update.
In The Lancet, the prestigious British medical journal, a United Nations damage assessment concluded that Gaza’s human development has been set back by an estimated 77 years since October, 2023. 77 years. A three-generation reversal. It confirmed that Israel has killed 20,000 Palestinian children in the genocide and continues strikes during the so-called “ceasefire.” It also determined that Israel has killed 1700 Palestinian health-care workers as of October 7, 2025. The systematic destruction of the health-care system has laid the groundwork for the extermination of the people of Gaza. What was not completed by the most active, devastating phase of the genocide has been steadily moving toward its grim final conclusion. In the words of the report, “There must be accountability for Israeli authorities’ violations of international law. Without justice, recovery is impossible, and the dismantling of Gaza’s health system will continue with impunity.”
Investigative reporters Jeremy Scahill and Jawa Ahmad of Drop Site News analyzed recent actions of the “Board of Peace.” Essentially, the “Board of Peace,” acting as Israel’s proxy, has imposed new terms on Hamas, terms they did not agree to in the October 2025 “ceasefire” agreement, most notably forcing upon them an order to unilaterally disarm. Hamas met the terms of the first phase of the deal – ceasing fire, and turning over all the hostages, dead and alive – as promised. More substantive issues, such as disarmament, reconstruction, transfer of power to an interim administrative organization, and a “credible pathway to Palestinian statehood,” were to be negotiated in later phases of agreement. However, on June 13, the “Board of Peace” sent Palestinian officials a letter threatening that if Hamas refuses to capitulate to the disarmament edict, “the ceasefire terms would be deemed ‘null and void,’ paving the way for Israel to resume its large-scale military operations and halting aid deliveries to Gaza.” According to Abdullah Al-Arian, an associate professor of history at Georgetown University in Qatar, “What we’re seeing is an attempt, in the shadow of a genocide, to dismantle the Palestinian resistance through all these preconditions.” Diana Buttu, Palestinian lawyer and long-time peace negotiator, describes the approach of the “Board of Peace:” “It’s all about front-loading Israeli security. And who cares about Palestinians in the end? They’ve completely ignored genocide. They’ve completely ignored the bigger picture of what’s happening to the two million people that are in Gaza. And if we don’t agree on every single word and every single “I” that’s dotted and “T” crossed, then Palestinians are just going to starve.”
There are several current Gaza-related initiatives in Congress. There is evidence that some Congress members have not forgotten Gaza, and are actively working to put forward amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2027. We have included in this week’s newsletter the always-excellent and thorough Foundation for Middle East Peace Legislative Round-Up for mid-June:
1) Rep. Stansbury (D-NM) – Amendments #13 and #14 - proposes $50 million for education programs in Gaza, and not less than $75 million to meet the urgent needs of children in Gaza, including for maternal and child health services, malnutrition, child protective services, and shelter;
2) Rep. Ramirez (D-IL) – Amendment #49 - proposes an amendment to prohibit funds fo the unvetted Board of Peace International Stabilization Force unless the State Department certifies that they are endorsed by a democratically elected Palestinian governing body, and include robust, independent human rights monitoring;
3) Rep. Tlaib (D-MI) – Amendment #67 - would prohibit funds to any government that has committed war crimes, including attacks on hospitals, aid workers, journalists, and impeded the delivery of humanitarian aid;
4) Rep. Quigley (D-IL) – Amendment #81 - wants to make $400 million available for the reconstruction of civilian infrastructure in Gaza, and
5) Rep. Carson (D-IN) – Amendment #77 - proposes that the Congress fully restore UNRWA funding which supports essential humanitarian aid, food security, education, and healthcare for the most vulnerable populations in Gaza.
We can all contact our congressional representatives and encourage them to support these amendments put forward by their colleagues to help meet the needs of grievously suffering Palestinians in Gaza, to guard against abuses by the Board of Peace, and to fight back against the policy of erasing Gaza.