In the West Bank, Israeli settlers assault a Palestinian man and vandalize his grape trees in Jurat ash-Sham’a. Israeli forces shoot and injure a Palestinian man in Faqqua. Israeli forces also shoot and injure a Palestinian man during a raid in Tulkarm. Elsewhere, Israeli forces demolish a home, commercial structures, and a water well in ‘Anata. Israeli forces also demolish 2 homes and a tract of land in al-Walaja. Meanwhile, Israeli forces issue notices to Palestinians living in Area B in Bayt Awa that they are not allowed to engage in new construction. In East Jerusalem, Israeli settlers tour the Haram al-Sharif compound. Israeli authorities force a Palestinian family to demolish 2 floors of their 4-story apartment building in Bayt Hanina. Israeli authorities also deliver demolition orders for a home in Hizma and a car dealership in Wadi al-Juz. In Gaza, Israeli forces bomb Khan Yunis, Dayr al-Balah, Rafah, and Gaza City, killing more than 100 people, including at least 89 in Khan Yunis and 1 in a media tent outside of Al-Aqsa Hospital in Dayr al-Balah. Israeli forces also issue an evacuation order for eastern Khan Yunis and al-Mawasi affecting 400,000 people. An Israeli soldier is killed in Gaza. Northeast of Gaza, Israeli forces shoot and kill a Canadian citizen, claiming he had tried to stab people near Netiv HaAsara. In Lebanon, Hezbollah forces fire rockets at Tzuriel, injuring 2 people, and launch a drone at Malkia, damaging a military site. (AJ, AJ, AJ, AP, AP, HA, HA, HA, NYT, REU, REU, UNOCHA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 7/22; AJ 7/23; UNOCHA 7/26)
More than 39,006 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza, including at least 16,054 children and 10,700 women, and around 89,818 have been injured since 10/7/2023. At least 10,000 people are missing in rubble. 571 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces and settlers in the West Bank and East Jerusalem since 10/7/2023, including 134 children. More than 5,420 people have been injured. Israel reports that 1,139 Israelis and foreign nationals have been killed and 5,400 have been injured in Israel since 10/7/2023, including Israeli soldiers. In addition, 326 Israeli soldiers have been killed and 2,147 injured in Gaza since the ground invasion began on 10/27/2023. Over 1.93 million Palestinians, nearly 85% of the population of Gaza, have been displaced since 10/7/2023. There has been a complete electricity blackout in Gaza since 10/12/2023 due to the Israeli blockade. At least 79,000 housing units have been destroyed and 370,000 have been damaged in Israeli airstrikes since 10/7/2023. 7 trucks carrying aid enter Gaza. The Nasser Hospital appeals for blood donations, saying it is facing a shortage of blood. The Red Crescent closes 2 of its clinics in Ma’an and Bani Suhaila following the Israeli evacuation order for Khan Yunis. (AJ, AJ, UNOCHA, WAFA, WAFA 7/22; UNRWA 7/26)
Israel says 2 captives held by Hamas were killed months ago and that the military is investigating whether they were killed in an Israeli airstrike. (AJ, AP, HA, REU 7/22)
PA president Mahmoud Abbas and PLO secretary-general Hussein al-Sheikh meet with Russian special envoy to the Middle East Vladimir Safronkov in Ramallah. (WAFA, WAFA 7/22)
The Knesset passes the first readings of 3 bills targeting UNRWA, including one to designate UNRWA a terrorist organization, one to prohibit the agency from operating on Israeli territory, and one to strip UNRWA personnel of their legal immunities. The PLO, the PA, Islamic Jihad, Qatar, Turkey, and the Arab League condemn the move to declare UNRWA a terrorist organization. Jordan also condemns the Knesset’s moves, saying Israel is attempting “to kill the agency, assassinate it politically, and target its symbolism, which affirms the right of Palestinian refugees to return and compensation in accordance with international law.” EU high commissioner for foreign affairs Josep Borrell calls the charges against UNRWA “nonsense.” (AJ, REU, TOI, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA. WAFA 7/22; AJ, AP, WAFA 7/23; WAFA 7/24; REU 7/25)
Israeli Channel 12 reports that Hamas leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar sent a message to Israel weeks before 10/7/2023, warning that “a flare up in prisons and over the prisoners” could be expected. The report added that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant discussed the issue with senior officials from the military, the Shin Bet, and the Mossad. (HA 7/22)
U.S. president Joe Biden, who on 7/21 announced that he will not run for reelection, says in a public call with his campaign headquarters that he will spend his final months in office working with Israelis and Palestinians “to work out how we can get the Gaza war to end, and Middle East peace, and get all those hostages home.” (AJ, AX 7/22)
The Palestinian Olympic Committee calls on International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach to exclude Israel from the upcoming games, saying Israel is breaching the traditional Olympic truce which runs from 7/19 to mid-September, that Israel is denying safe passage to Palestinian athletes, and that around 400 Palestinian athletes have been killed by Israel since 10/7/2023. (AJ, WAFA 7/22)