Drop Site Daily: December 8, 2025
Israel kills seven Palestinians in attacks on Saturday. A humanitarian aid coordinator tells Drop Site the ceasefire masks a “catastrophic reality” on the ground in Gaza. Israeli police raid UNRWA compound in Jerusalem. In Doha, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa responds to questions about his militant past; diplomats discuss the International Stabilization Force and reproach Israel for its ceasefire violations; Saudi Arabia is the lone voice in support of disarmament. A secret meeting between Qatar, Israel, and the U.S. The White House wants more economic and diplomatic meetings between Israel and its neighbors. The FBI is making a list of “extremists.” Rep. Adelita Grijalva pepper-sprayed by ICE. Mass rapes and spiking malnutrition reported in Sudan. LIBRE alleges fraud in Honduras and calls for new elections. A major rally in support of Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum draws 600,000 people. Fighting between Thailand and Cambodia renewed. Coup in Benin foiled. U.S. Senate to vote to extend Obamacare subsidies. A vote for the U.S. National Defense Authorization Act is expected in the House this week.
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The Genocide in Gaza
- Casualty counts in the last 24 hours: Over the past 24 hours, the bodies of five Palestinians, including two recovered from the rubble, arrived at hospitals, while 11 Palestinians have been injured, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health. The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 is now 70,365 killed, with 171,058 injured.
- Total casualty counts since ceasefire: Since October 11, the first full day of the ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 376 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 981, while 626 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble, according to the Ministry of Health.
- Attacks kill at least seven on Saturday: Israeli forces killed at least seven Palestinians on Saturday, including an incident in which a 70-year-old woman and her son were attacked by drones near al-Ahli Hospital. Two civilians were killed in another airstrike on the northwestern edge of Beit Lahia, and a man was gunned down in Jabalia, according to Al Jazeera.
- Humanitarian aid coordinator laments that ceasefire is largely symbolic: Eyad Amawi, a humanitarian aid coordinator in central Gaza, told Drop Site that the so-called peace plan masks a “catastrophic reality”: 90% of Gaza is crushed; eastern Gaza has been turned into buffer zones; Rafah is wiped out; and no schools, economy, or basic infrastructure have yet to be rebuilt or recovered. Israel continues to block heavy equipment, fuel, and shelter materials while permitting consumer goods, Amawi said, and bodies are left under the rubble, industries have collapsed, and families face what he described as a “quiet continuation of genocide” through hunger, disease, and the cold. His comments to Drop Site are available here.
- Israel is allowing only five trucks of medical supplies into Gaza weekly: Israel is allowing only five trucks of medical supplies into the Strip each week—three for international agencies and just two for government hospitals—leaving more than half of essential medicines unavailable, according to Gaza health officials. Dr. Munir al-Bursh told Al Jazeera that even as consumer goods enter Gaza, lifesaving items like antibiotics, IV solutions, and surgical supplies are barred, leaving injured and chronically ill patients with almost no chance of receiving proper care.
- UN Population Fund warns of deepening trauma from gender-based violence: In its update Saturday, the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) said Gaza remains “suspended between survival and uncertainty,” warning that the ceasefire has not ended the war’s physical, emotional, or economic toll on women and girls. The organization outlined collapsing health services, surging gender-based violence, deepening poverty among tens of thousands of women-headed households, severe access constraints to the delivery of aid, and mounting youth trauma, even as UNFPA has reached more than 120,000 people during the pause and aims to expand support through 2026.
Highlights from the Doha Forum
- Al-Sharaa confronted about his militant past: When asked about his “real allegiances” by Christian Amanpour, Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa objected to her use of the term “terrorist,” arguing that if it refers to those who kill innocent civilians in places like Gaza, Iraq, and Afghanistan, then the label might equally be applied to Israel or the United States. He argued his point by saying that nearly 25 years after the U.S. war in Afghanistan, people “are aware of who the real terrorists are.”
- The state of the International Stabilization Force (ISF): Turkey’s foreign minister Hakan Fidan told the audience that a “big discussion” is underway over the design and deployment of the UN-approved International Stabilization Force for Gaza. The biggest issues before the mediators remain who will contribute to the force, what the command structure of the force will be, and other logistical issues. Fidan went on to say that Israel is vetoing Turkish participation in the force, that the ISF should not prioritize disarmament, saying the “ISF cannot be expected to do what Israel’s military has failed to do,” and that there must be a return to internal governance in Gaza. Additional reporting from Doha suggests that both Qatar and Egypt are pushing for a rapid deployment of the ISF, and according to comments from Egypt’s Foreign minister.
- Turkey, Spain, and Egypt all blame Israel for its repeated ceasefire violations: The Turkish foreign minister also warned that the Gaza plan could collapse without a “substantial” intervention by President Donald Trump with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying the scale of daily Israeli ceasefire violations is “indescribable” at this point. Egypt’s Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty echoed this criticism in his remarks, as did Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares, who said it was unacceptable that the ceasefire is “permanently being violated,” and that “every week, several dozens of innocent Palestinians are being killed.” Albares called for “massive” humanitarian access into Gaza and urged that UN agencies, especially UNRWA, be restored to their central role in aid delivery.
- Egypt will “spare no effort” for Palestinian statehood, Foreign Minister says: Badr Abdelatty told attendees that Egypt will “spare no effort” to ensure Palestinians remain on their land and can build their own state, underscoring that lasting security for Israel and the wider region is impossible without its realization. He claimed that Egypt is also leading on humanitarian support, providing roughly 70% of all aid entering Gaza compared with 30% from the rest of the world.
- Norwegian FM says the ceasefire is fragile: Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide raised concerns that the Gaza ceasefire is “very fragile” and could unravel within weeks without rapid progress pertaining to its political framework, noting the alternative is a slide back into war or “total anarchy.” He said President Trump’s 20-point plan lacks clear sequencing, making it easier for participants to stall, and urged that the transitional governance bodies and stabilization force be established “this month” to move the process forward.
- Saudi Arabian representative is the singular voice for disarmament: Of all the representatives assembled in Doha—from Turkey, Egypt, Norway, Spain, the EU, and Qatar—only one, Dr. Manal Radwan from Saudi Arabia, expressed firm commitment to disarmament. Minister Plenipotentiary Radwan said there must be no “redefining” of what disarmament means under the UN’s ceasefire plan and dismissed debates over the logistics of such a program. By contrast, Norway’s foreign minister said it is “very unlikely” there would ever be a consensus for an international force to physically disarm Hamas against its will, stressing that any weapons removal must be Palestinian-led and have an agreed-upon framework.
- Qatari Foreign Minister talks “path forward,” financing: Qatar’s Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said that the ceasefire cannot be completed until Israel fully withdraws, stability is restored in Gaza, and movement in and out of the territory is possible, adding that mediators are trying to “force the way forward” to advance the deal into its second phase. Al-Thani said that Qatar will not pay to rebuild Gaza’s destruction, stating “We will not rebuild what Israel destroyed.” While Qatar remains committed to supporting the Palestinian people through humanitarian aid, he said, it will not “write the check” for reconstruction caused by Israel’s campaign.
- Former Iranian diplomat asserts his country’s strength, takes a swipe at Qatar: Former Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif recalled that Iran had compelled the United States to evacuate bases in the region, including the one in Qatar that Tehran targeted after U.S. strikes on its nuclear facilities. Zarif said Iran “doesn’t import its security,” and argued that the world must recognize his country’s strength and self-reliance to move forward together in peace.
- Francesca Albanese criticizes the failure of the international order: UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese said at Doha that Gaza has revealed an “apocalyptic” collapse of moral accountability, exposing how international safeguards have been hollowed out by the power of major states, their impunity, and Western hypocrisy. Palestine has also ignited a global awakening led by the youth and workers, she said, and vowed to keep speaking despite unprecedented U.S. sanctions. Albanese concluded by saying that justice requires Israel to end the occupation, withdraw its forces, and dismantle its settlements.
West Bank and Israel
- Israel raids UN compound in Jerusalem: Israeli police raided the compound of UNRWA in occupied East Jerusalem on Monday with a large number of security forces, including police on motorcycles, trucks, and forklifts. Police cut communications to the compound, which is located in the neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, and replaced the UN flag with the Israeli flag. “The unauthorized and forceful entry by Israeli security forces is an unacceptable violation of UNRWA’s privileges and immunities as a U.N. agency,” UNRWA said in a statement. Police said in a statement that they entered for a “debt-collection procedure.” UNRWA provides services to millions of Palestinian refugees in Gaza, the occupied West Bank, East Jerusalem, Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon. Israel formally banned UNRWA from operating in occupied Palestinian territory in January. The U.S., which was once the largest donor to UNRWA, cut funding in early 2024.
- Secret meeting between Israel, Qatar, and U.S.: The U.S. hosted a secret meeting with Israel and Qatar in New York on Sunday, in which the next stage of the ceasefire was discussed, Axios reported. The primary topic of this meeting was how the parties might move the ceasefire into its second phase, particularly on the issue of disarmament. The U.S. was represented by Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, Israel by Mossad chief David Barnea, and Qatar by a senior diplomat who attended on his country’s behalf.
- White House planning more summits between Israel and its neighbors: The White House is weighing a brokered summit between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, contingent on Israel approving a multibillion-dollar Chevron-backed gas deal that would provide roughly a quarter of Egypt’s electricity, Axios reported. Al-Sisi approved the deal in July, but Israel has delayed it for domestic political reasons. U.S. officials say Israel is now drafting economic proposals for Cairo. Washington has also been exploring tech and energy initiatives with Lebanon, Syria, and Saudi Arabia, with proposals for additional economic coordination between Israel and its neighboring states.
- Netanyahu meets German Chancellor Merz in Tel Aviv: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Tel Aviv that “political annexation” of the occupied West Bank is still under active consideration, answering German objections by saying Israel already controls security “between the Jordan River and the sea” and intends to maintain it. He added that Israel is “very close” to completing the first phase of President Donald Trump’s plan.
- Killings in Hebron and General Strike: The Israeli Army admitted that it shot two Palestinians—17-year-old Ahmed Khalil al-Rajabi and 55-year-old Ziad Naeem Abdul-Jabbar Abu Daoud—at a checkpoint in Hebron, alleging that al-Rajabi was driving a car towards its soldiers and admitting that Abu Daoud was an innocent bystander, who WAFA reports was working as a street cleaner. Residents organised a general strike in response to the killing.
- Smotrich sets Hasbara funding at $750 million: Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar agreed to allocate 2.35 billion shekels—roughly $750 million—for global hasbara efforts in the 2026 budget. The money will fund international media operations, social-media campaigns, and outreach to foreign politicians and influencers, marking a major expansion of state-backed propaganda as Israel faces intensifying global scrutiny over its conduct in Gaza.
- Palestinian Authority VP meets with Barghouti sons: The Vice President of the Palestinian Authority, Hussein al-Sheikh, announced Sunday that he met with Qassam and Arab Barghouti, the sons of imprisoned Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti. Al-Sheikh reported that the meeting was focused on coordinating joint action to free Barghouti, who was reportedly subject to additional abuse and whose safety has been in question within the last week.
- Widespread Israeli surveillance: Israeli operatives are accused of conducting widespread surveillance of U.S. forces and other allies stationed at the Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC) in southern Israel, according to the Guardian. The U.S. commander of the base, Lt. Gen. Patrick Frank, reportedly summoned his Israeli counterpart for a meeting to tell him that “recording has to stop here.” Staff and visitors from other countries have also raised concerns about Israel recording inside the CMCC. The Israeli military told the Guardian that conversations inside the CMCC are unclassified. “The claim that the IDF is gathering intelligence on its partners in meetings in which the IDF is an active participant is absurd,” the Israeli military said in a statement.
U.S. News
- FBI making a list of American “extremists”: A new Justice Department memo, reported on in a new piece from Ken Klippenstein, shows Attorney General Pam Bondi ordering the FBI to draw up a list of groups deemed potential domestic-terror threats—including those expressing “opposition to law and immigration enforcement,” “extreme views in favor of mass migration,” “radical gender ideology,” “anti-Americanism,” and similar viewpoints. The memo instructs the FBI and Joint Terrorism Task Forces to use “all available investigative tools,” expands public tip-solicitation with cash rewards, and retroactively investigates incidents going back five years. Read Ken Klippenstein’s full report on this here.
- NDAA text released, vote this week. The National Defense Authorization Act sets Pentagon policy for the year, and is a rare must-pass piece of legislation. For that reason, the agreed-upon text released last night clocks in at over 3,000 pages, authorizes more than $900 billion. It includes $400 million for Ukraine and pledges to continue the war on “woke ideology.” A vote is expected in the House this week.
- Senate to vote on health care subsidies. A vote is expected Thursday on a Democratic plan to extend Obamacare subsidies for three years. Republicans have not coalesced around an alternative proposal and are expected to largely vote against the subsidies. The vote is the product of the deal to end the government shutdown.
- Supreme Court to hear Trump’s challenge to birthright citizenship. Early next year, the Court will hear arguments on the constitutionality of Trump’s effort to end birthright citizenship and overturn the 14th Amendment.
- Rep. Adelita Grijalva says she was pepper-sprayed by ICE: Rep. Adelita Grijalva said she was pepper-sprayed and shoved by ICE agents in Tucson on Friday, after identifying herself as a member of Congress, while seeking information about a raid at a local restaurant, where roughly 40 agents were confronting protesters. Video reviewed by The Washington Post appears to confirm Grijalva’s account, showing ICE deploying tear gas and pepper balls. “This is like the restaurant I come to literally once a week,” Grijalva said about the attack. “I was asking for clarification, which is my right as a member of Congress.”
- ICE agents target the family of a recently deported college student: Immigration agents in three unmarked vehicles appeared on Sunday at the Austin home of college student Any Lucía López Belloza—the young woman famously deported after attempting to return home for Thanksgiving—the New York Times reported. ICE reportedly chased her father, Francis López, into the backyard without a warrant. López entered his house and locked the door, with ICE agents leaving two hours later. “We are a bit scared, especially for our daughters,” Francis López said, as the family’s lawyer and local officials warned the visit appeared to intentionally intimidate the López family, after they publicly challenged Lucía López’s deportation.
- Columbia protester in ICE detention: NPR published audio of a recent call from Leqaa Kordia, the last Columbia University protester still in ICE detention. Kordia described nine months in an overcrowded Texas facility, where 87 women are held in a space built for 37, with people sleeping on the floor and “no privacy.” Though a judge has twice ordered her release, the government appealed both times, accusing her of supporting Hamas—an allegation she denies—and she told her cousin she was shocked to be jailed in the U.S. “for saying free Palestine, ceasefire now.”
International News
- Mass rapes reported in northern Sudan: Sudan Doctors Network says it documented 19 new rapes committed by Rapid Support Forces fighters at the Al-Afad displacement camp in Al-Dabba, including two committed on pregnant women now receiving care for their assaults, and described the attacks on women fleeing El-Fasher as part of the RSF’s systematic use of sexual violence in violation of international law. The organisation is now urging the UN to send independent investigators and to commit to protecting women and children along displacement routes.
- Malnutrition spikes in Sudan: At least 23 children died from severe malnutrition this month in Kordofan, as the UAE-backed RSF imposed sieges blocking food, medicine, and aid, according to the Sudan Doctors Network. Dr. Mohamed Elsheikh, a spokesperson for the SDN, told NBC News the RSF is replicating the same siege and blockade tactics across South Kordofan, leaving cities without access to basic supplies. UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk warned that the region risks becoming “another el-Fasher,” where tens of thousands were recently killed.
- Death toll in South Kordofan rises: The death toll from drone strikes on a kindergarten and other sites in South Kordofan last week has risen to at least 114 people killed, including 63 children, according to the head of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. The WHO said a strike hit the kindergarten, and at least three strikes hit the nearby Kalogi Rural Hospital, as paramedics were trying to move the injured from the kindergarten to the hospital. The groups Sudan Doctor’s Network and Emergency Lawyers blamed the paramilitary RSF for the strikes.
- LIBRE party alleges fraud, seeks nullification: A lawyer for Honduras’ ruling LIBRE party has filed a request to nullify the results of last week’s presidential, congressional, and PARLACEN elections, according to Honduras Now. The lawyer alleges that the collapse of the vote transmission system contaminated both preliminary and final results, “adulterated the popular will,” and violated electoral law. The complaint asks the National Electoral Council to mandate new voting within ten days, though the National Electoral Council has said fresh elections would take four to six months to organize.
- Supporters rally for Claudia Sheinbaum: A demonstration of support for Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum drew an estimated 600,000 people in Mexico City alone over the weekend, as reported by Drop Site contributor José Luis Granados Ceja. The rally was organised in response to last month’s anti-Sheinbaum mobilisation, protests which were sparked by the murder of a mayor in Michoacan but which came to encompass frustration with drug violence in the country, the government’s security policies, and opposition to Sheinbaum. In an address to her supporters, Sheinbaum defended her record, articulated her project, and detailed where her support comes from. “Let no one be mistaken,” she said, “The vast majority of young people support the transformation of public life in Mexico.”
- Fighting renewed along the Thailand-Cambodia border: Thailand launched airstrikes along its disputed border with Cambodia on Monday after both countries accused the other of breaching a ceasefire deal brokered by President Trump. At least one Thai soldier and four Cambodian civilians have been killed and tens of thousands have been forced to flee from their homes.
- Afghanistan-Pakistan fighting kills five Afghans: A Friday-night exchange of fire along the Spin Boldak-Chaman border killed five Afghan civilians—including three children and a woman—and wounded several others on both sides, according to the AP. Each government has accused the other of violating a fragile two-month ceasefire.
- Russians claim more territory in Ukraine: The Russian military claims it took control of the villages of Kucherivka in Ukraine’s northern Kharkiv region and Rivne in the eastern Donetsk region, its Defense Ministry reports. Meanwhile, the International Atomic Energy Agency says the protective structure over Ukraine’s Chernobyl reactor can no longer carry out its core containment after being damaged in a drone strike in February. They report the facility “lost its primary safety functions,” though experts caution that risks associated from this change remain low.
- Russian sale of planes to Iran in motion: Leaked Russian defense correspondence indicates that a long-promised sale of 16 Su-35 fighter jets to Iran has moved into active production under a dedicated export contract, as reported by Al-Monitor. The deliveries are planned between 2025 and 2027—a transfer that would mark Iran’s most significant combat-air upgrade in decades. The documents suggest the aircraft are fully financed and already on the assembly line, reflecting Moscow’s effort to compensate Tehran for drones and missiles used in Ukraine as well as Iran’s push to fill a widening capability gap in its aging air force.
- Coup in Benin foiled: Benin’s President Patrice Talon said Sunday that security forces quickly foiled an attempted coup after a group of soldiers attacked his residence in Cotonou and briefly seized state television to announce his removal, the suspension of the constitution, and the dissolution of all institutions. Authorities arrested 14 people, declared the country secure, and received backing from the Economic Community of West African States, which condemned the “unconstitutional” attempt amid a wider wave of military takeovers across West Africa.
More From Drop Site
- Alleged electoral fraud in Honduras: Days after Honduras’s presidential vote produced a technical tie, electoral council member Marlon Ochoa alleged “monumental electoral fraud,” accusing electoral authorities of manipulating the results-transmission system, disabling biometric checks, and withholding thousands of tally sheets in ways he says created discrepancies in nearly one million votes. The count remains unresolved, and the TREP reporting system has been heavily scrutinized. Many see President Donald Trump’s intervention on behalf of the National Party candidate, Nasry Asfura. Read José Luis Granados Ceja’s full piece on the lack of resolution in the Honduran election here.
- Pakistan proposes a politically volatile swap: Pakistan will repatriate British-Pakistani members of the Rochdale grooming gang—long considered “undeportable”—if London agrees to extradite two prominent political dissidents: former minister Shahzad Akbar and commentator Adil Raja. The offer, delivered in a closed-door meeting between Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and the British High Commissioner, has placed the UK in a bind between the domestic political payoff of deporting convicted sex offenders and its legal duty to shield critics of Pakistan’s military from persecution and torture. Read the latest collaboration between Ryan Grim, Waqas Ahmed, and Murtaza Hussain here.
- Drop Site’s Jeremy Scahill features prominently in the new documentary, “The Six Million Dollar Man,” which traces the story of WikiLeaks and Julian Assange, with a particular focus on his fight to avoid extradition to the US. The film won the “L’Œil d’or” at Cannes, and its trailer can be viewed here.
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