October is not pink under colonialism

Published

10-17-2025

While the world's humanitarian and medical institutions turn pink to mark the World Health Organization's annual Pink October campaign, genocidal Israel continues to target Palestinian women, especially in Gaza. Pink October is aimed at raising awareness of the need for early detection and treatment of breast cancer in women — while thousands of Palestinian women are denied access to medical services and early screening programs. Palestinian medical patients are also routinely denied their right to travel for medical treatment.

In black instead of pink, Palestinian women in Gaza grieve the pain and loss they have endured during more than two years of Israel's genocide – enabled by the colonial West.

For nearly a hundred years, Palestinian women have been at the heart of the struggle against Israel's settler-colonial and apartheid regime in various fields, making them direct targets. Israel's leaders have always considered Palestinian women a "demographic threat" to its colonial project. For example, former Israeli Minister Ayelet Shaked directly called for the targeting and killing of Palestinian women, especially the mothers of martyrs, describing them as "raising little snakes."

For two years of genocide, Israel killed on average seven women every two hours, including two mothers. The number of Palestinian women killed by Israel in Gaza is stated to be over 12,000, with tens of thousands more missing under the rubble. Israel has compounded the suffering of Palestinian women through forced displacement, starvation, and the targeting of all aspects of life — such as the health sector and the complete shutdown of hospitals — all part of an endless series of crimes committed against 2.3 million Palestinians in the besieged and illegally occupied Gaza Strip.

Every day, dozens of Palestinian women are forced to give birth under shelling and the sound of gunfire, without any medical care during or after childbirth. Israel's occupation has forced thousands of pregnant women to constantly move under the immediate threat of death, many of whom have miscarried as a result of these conditions. The suffering of hundreds of thousands of Palestinian women has been compounded by direct injuries from the bombing. They are also under risk of contracting multiple diseases as a result of genocidal Israel preventing the delivery of aid containing essential health supplies to the Gaza Strip. Even before the beginning of Israel's genocide, the prolonged criminal siege imposed by Israel for more than 17 years exacerbated the difficult living conditions for Palestinian women in Gaza.

In Israeli prisons, Israel imposes an even more complex reality on female Palestinian prisoners in general, and cancer patients in particular. Israel not only subjects them to daily oppression and violations, depriving them of the most basic human rights and daily health needs, but also forces them to face pain without any healthcare. In just one instance, the Israeli authorities forced prisoner Tahani Abu Samhan to give birth without any medical support, for her or her new born.

A ceasefire, even if Israel is eventually forced to respect it, will not stop all these Israeli crimes or the genocide against Palestinians — only meaningful accountability will.

This Pink October, we salute Palestinian women. Palestine is a feminist issue. In honor of the suffering, sacrifices, and heroic resistance and sumud of Palestinian women, we will continue to escalate pressure against genocidal Israel, including Israeli and complicit companies and institutions. The White Flag movement calls on our millions of supporters worldwide to escalate pressure to end Israel's genocide and its decades-old regime of settler-colonialism, apartheid, and illegal occupation.

A new UN published report, "Gaza Genocide: a collective crime," exposes the complicity of states in enabling Israel's livestreamed genocide against Palestinians

A new UN published report, "Gaza Genocide: a collective crime," exposes the complicity of states in enabling Israel's livestreamed genocide against Palestinians.

The groundbreaking report, authored by UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese, affirms Israel's genocide is:

• "A collective crime" made possible by the complicity of states that have "enabled longstanding systemic violations of international law by Israel."
• Facilitated through "direct support, material aid, diplomatic protection and, in some cases, active participation."

Here are 4 key takeaways from the report and 4 key ways to escalate BDS now.

(1) From complicity to partnership

When some states' complicity becomes "direct, indispensable and constitutive," to the extent that Israel's crimes "would not have occurred in whole or in part" without it, these states may have crossed the threshold from complicity to direct participation in those crimes.

(2) A comprehensive boycott of Israel is required

The report outlines Israel's decades long failure to "distinguish between its territory and the [occupied Palestinian territories],oPt," even following the ICJ ruling that its occupation of Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, was illegal. Third States must therefore "presume indistinguishability" and impose "a comprehensive boycott of Israel."

This means immediately suspending "all military, diplomatic and economic relations with Israel, as any such engagement could represent means to aid/assist/directly participate in unlawful acts, including war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.

(3) Colonial dehumanization lies at the heart of the genocide

"Most Western leaders parroted Israeli narratives, disseminated by State and corporate media, repeating debunked claims and erasing core distinctions between combatants and civilians. … Drawing on a long history of the 'savage' denied protections of international law, … Western States helped to justify the genocide against Palestinians."

(4) Justice demands ending the impunity of Israel and its enablers

"Many Third States have operated with the very impunity they have granted

Israel. Their disregard for international law undermines the foundations of the multilateral order painstakingly built over eight decades … within the United Nations."

"While justice must involve criminal trials … accountability extends beyond prosecutions to include reparations: restitution, compensation, rehabilitation, satisfaction and guarantees of non-repetition, by Israel and by Third States that have supported its crimes. The power structures that enabled these heinous crimes must be dismantled."

The Special Rapporteur concludes by urging "trade unions, lawyers, civil society and ordinary citizens to … continue to press institutions, governments and corporations [with] boycotts, divestments and sanctions, until the end of the Israeli illegal occupation and related crimes."

We call for escalating BDS pressure on complicit governments and parliaments, including through peaceful disruption, to:

1. Impose a comprehensive military and energy embargo on Israel.
2. Expel Israel from the UN and push for lawful sanctions against it.
3. End all diplomatic, trade, cultural and academic relations with Israel that may contribute to its unlawful occupation, apartheid, or genocide.