The situation is desperate here in Gaza, the coastal strip that is abundant with nothing except human beings. Just a couple of hours before Iftaar, the time of day after sunset when Muslims break their fast during the holy month of Ramadan, Muslims around the globe shop to prepare. Gaza’s crowded Khan Younis is no exception. However, though they may be thronged with people, Gaza’s markets are lacking any holiday festivity or commerce. EI correspondent Rami Almeghari reports from Gaza. Read more about A bankrupt Ramadan in Gaza 

HEBRON HILLS, WEST BANK, 11 September (IRIN) - Israeli settlements in the West Bank are having a severe humanitarian impact on rural Palestinian areas, according to a report by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) on 30 August. The settlements disconnect Palestinians from agricultural land and limit their movement, restricting access to markets and water resources, the report, entitled “The Humanitarian Impact of Israeli Infrastructure in the West Bank,” said. In the southern Hebron Hills area a conflict between Israeli settlers and Palestinians over land and water resources is apparent. Read more about UN report: Settlements squeezing out Palestinians 

Dearest Janet, It’s a very beautiful fall day here in Beirut, 25 years ago this week since the 16-18 September 1982 Massacre at the Palestinian refugee camps at Sabra-Shatila. It actually rained last night, enough to clean out some of the humidity and dust. Fortunately, not enough to make the usual rain-created swamp of sewage and filth on Rue Sabra, or flood the grassless burial ground of the mass grave where you once told me that on Sunday, 19 September 1982, you watched, sickened, as families and Red Crescent workers created a subterranean mountain of butchered and bullet-riddled victims from those 48 hours of slaughter. Franklin Lamb writes from Beirut. Read more about After 25 years, who remembers? 

Israel’s practice of denying family reunification permits and denying entry to foreign passport holders (many but not all of whom are of Palestinian origin) is part of a campaign of ridding the occupied territories (including East Jerusalem) of Palestinians and tightly controlling those it is obliged to retain. Ida Audeh writes for EI. Read more about Israeli policies target Palestinian families  

HEBRON, 9 September (IRIN) - Israeli policy in Hebron city center has led thousands of Palestinians to leave their homes and some 1,829 businesses have been shut down since 1994, a report by the Israeli human rights organizations B’Tselem and the Association for Civil Rights has charged. Entitled “Ghost Town”, reflecting the two groups’ opinion of what has befallen the once vibrant center of Hebron, the report surveys Palestinian life in the divided city. “Israel’s policy severely impacts thousands of Palestinians by violating the right to life, liberty, personal safety, freedom of movement, health, and property, among other rights,” said the report. Read more about Hebron settlements make Palestinian life nearly impossible 

It took over three months, but in the end the Lebanese army claimed victory over Fatah al-Islam, the previously unheard of non-Palestinian, al-Qaida-inspired group that had established itself in the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp in northern Lebanon. On Tuesday, 4 September 2007, outside the entrance to the destroyed camp the Lebanese army massed together to begin what would be a 10-hour-long parade from Nahr al-Bared to Beirut just over 50 miles away. EI editor Matthew Cassel reports from Lebanon. Read more about Ready to return with nothing 

When Architects and Planners for Justice in Palestine (APJP) sent a letter to the new British Prime Minister Gordon Brown two weeks ago describing as “disturbing” his decision to become a patron of the Jewish National Fund (JNF), this was another example of the active campaigning of this international pressure group. The letter says: “Your becoming a patron of JNF-UK can be seen as a tacit acceptance of an unacceptable status quo, and also places you in the position of not being an unbiased mediator in the peace process.” Susannah Tarbush reports. Read more about Architects protest Brown's JNF patronship 

On Tuesday, the Israeli high court decided in favor of a petition drawn up by the Palestinian villagers of Bil’in in the occupied West Bank to change the current route of the illegal apartheid wall which encircles the small village. For years, residents of Bil’in, along with international and Israeli activists, have led nonviolent resistance actions every week against the encroaching wall and the illegal settlement colonies that expand on a daily basis on their land. Nora Barrows-Friedman reports for EI. Read more about Legal victory in struggle against wall 

Sarah Abu Ghazal’s school uniform still lay on her mattress, untouched as she had left it before running out after her cousins Mahmoud and Yehya Abu Ghazal on Wednesday, 29 August. She was to begin the fourth grade on 2 September, but her friend Amani, who has accompanied her to school since the first grade, would walk alone this year. Sarah’s mother had bought her the blue school uniform, blue jeans and the black shoes just the day before she was killed by Israel tank fire. Her mother waited until the last minute to buy Sarah’s school supplies because she was waiting for her husband’s salary which he had not received since June. Read more about Sarah, Mahmoud and Yehya