Palestine News Today: US Sanctions on ICC and Pulled Book Spotlight Gaza Accountability Fight
16 October 2026. As winter approaches, the United Nations is sounding new alarms over Gaza's humanitarian collapse and intensifying settler violence in the West Bank, even as the ceasefire marks its first year. Meanwhile, Washington's crackdown on the International Criminal Court and a publishing dispute over Palestinian history are fueling debate in the US over accountability and free expression on Palestine.
Washington Sanctions ICC Over Netanyahu Arrest Warrants
The Trump administration has imposed sweeping sanctions on the International Criminal Court as an institution, according to Democracy Now!. A war crimes prosecutor interviewed by the outlet said the move aims to help the court's targets avoid criminal liability, noting the sanctions escalate a campaign begun after ICC judges issued arrest warrants in 2024 for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant. The announcement came shortly after former ICC judge Navi Pillay spoke out, Democracy Now! reported.
Sources: Democracy Now!
Palestinian American Authors Pull Children's Book Over Edits
Authors Jenan Matari and Alana Hadid withdrew their young readers' book on Palestine from Penguin Random House after disputes with editors over passages covering the Nakba and October 7, according to Anadolu Agency and The Guardian. The book, originally contracted in 2024, will instead be published by Interlink in 2027. The Guardian reported the dispute centered on how Palestinian history and the events of October 7 were characterized in the text.
Sources: Anadolu Agency, The Guardian
Secret US-Israeli Opposition Meeting Reported Ahead of Elections
Middle East Monitor reported that US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee held an undisclosed meeting with an Israeli opposition leader ahead of upcoming elections. Al Jazeera separately noted that the outcome of Israel's elections will shape the future of more than 5.5 million Palestinians who have no vote in the process.
Sources: Middle East Monitor, Al Jazeera
UN Warns Nearly One Million Gazans Face Winter Flooding
The United Nations has warned that close to a million displaced Palestinians in Gaza face serious flood risks as winter approaches, according to Al Jazeera. A senior UN official separately told Anadolu Agency and Middle East Monitor that desperation in Gaza remains palpable a year after the ceasefire was signed, urging renewed international attention to deteriorating conditions in both Gaza and the West Bank.
Sources: Al Jazeera, Anadolu Agency, Middle East Monitor
Rafah Crossing Closure Enters Second Week, Blocking Medical Evacuations
Israel has kept the Rafah crossing closed for a second consecutive week, preventing patients from leaving Gaza for urgently needed treatment abroad, Gaza's Health Ministry told Middle East Monitor. Separately, Gaza's government media office denied imposing fees on aid trucks, accusing Israel of spreading such claims to justify restricting the roughly 600 daily truck entries it says are needed.
Sources: Middle East Monitor, Middle East Monitor
Settlers Burn Olive Trees as West Bank Attacks Continue
Settlers have set fire to Palestinian olive trees and vehicles during this year's harvest season, Al Jazeera reported, describing the assaults as pogroms against farmers. Anadolu Agency separately reported that two Palestinians, a 63-year-old woman and a 40-year-old man, were hospitalized after being attacked by Israeli forces while farming near the West Bank town of Abu Falah.
Sources: Al Jazeera, Anadolu Agency
Strikes and Demolitions Persist Despite Ceasefire
An Israeli drone strike wounded four Palestinians in Gaza even as the ceasefire officially holds, Anadolu Agency reported, adding that Israeli warships fired more than 40 times along Rafah's coast. Middle East Monitor also reported that Israeli forces demolished a residential building housing two Palestinian families near Hebron in the West Bank.
Sources: Anadolu Agency, Middle East Monitor
Rights Groups Document Palestinian Prisoners Shot by Guards
Israeli rights organizations have documented 22 accounts of Palestinian prisoners being shot by prison guards, according to Anadolu Agency, with groups recording serious injuries among detainees. Separately, Palestine's deputy UN envoy said Israeli demands in current negotiations amount to permanent subjugation, arguing that annexation cannot be justified on security grounds anywhere.
Sources: Anadolu Agency, Anadolu Agency
China and Türkiye Press Israel Over Settlements and Gaza
China's foreign minister told Israel's president to halt the forced establishment of West Bank settlements, calling the Palestinian question the greatest historical injustice of the century, according to BBC News and Al Jazeera. Türkiye's parliament speaker separately said the international community can no longer ignore the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, Anadolu Agency reported, while Turkish officials prepared to raise Palestinian unity at an upcoming meeting of Muslim-majority nations in Baghdad.
Sources: BBC News, Al Jazeera, Anadolu Agency, Anadolu Agency
Nineteen Nations Condemn Colombia's Jerusalem Embassy Move
Nineteen countries issued a joint condemnation of Colombia's decision to open an embassy in Jerusalem, saying the move violates UN Security Council resolutions and undermines the two-state solution, Anadolu Agency reported. Diplomats told Middle East Monitor that Colombia's related withdrawal from South Africa's genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice reflects a broader alignment with US positions.
Sources: Anadolu Agency, Middle East Monitor
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