Beneath the Ceasefire

The Innovator Jr. Official Statement on the Israel-Palestine Conflict

As the official publication of the students and associates of FEU Diliman's Basic Education Department, The Innovator Jr. stands firmly for truth, peace, and the protection of human rights.

This serves as the official statement of The Innovator Jr. in response to the recent Israeli air strikes. An act that gravely violates the agreed upon Gaza ceasefire deal with the Israeli and US government and reaffirms the urgency of global solidarity for the Palestinian people.

On the 9th of October 2025, Israel approved and began executing the first phase of a ceasefire deal in Gaza—an agreement that is meant to mark the end of the relentless bloodshed on the land of the olive trees. However, in the days that followed, the continuation of military offensives cast doubt on the sincerity of this accord. Reports documented the Israeli strike on the 10th of October 2025, which was followed by yet another air strike on Rafah, Gaza, on the 19th of October of the same year despite the supposed ceasefire still in effect.

This statement seeks to shed light on the contradiction between the declared ceasefire and the ongoing violence against the Palestinian people. It aims to state that peace cannot be declared through words and letters alone while actions continue to go against humanitarian principles.

Roots of the Problem

Palestinians have lived under occupation for moreover 75 years due to the 1917 Balfour Declaration made by British foreign secretary Arthur James Balfour. In this declaration, the United Kingdom expressed support for the establishment of a Jewish homeland in Palestine, completely disregarding the presence of the huge Arab population residing there. This was largely influenced by the rise of Zionism, a nationalist movement seeking a Jewish homeland after years of antisemitism. After the fall of the Ottoman Empire, Britain assumed control with the British Mandate of Palestine. This worsened the tensions between the Jewish immigrants and Arab residents, putting the communities in deep division and unrest that would only intensify as years to come.

When the United Kingdom began to lose control of both sides, it eventually gave up control and passed the issue to the newly formed United Nations in 1947. The UN proposed the Partition Plan, a plan that would divide the Jewish and Arab states, but instead triggered war due to the rejection of Arab leaders for its unfair land distribution between the two groups. This led to the 1948 Nakba, or ‘The Catastrophe,’ when 750,000 Palestinians were displaced from their homes as a result of the establishment of Israel under the Zionist movement, thus the land was divided into three which are Israel, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip.

From then on, Palestinians have lived under different forms of occupation such as the Armistice Green Line, the Intifadas, and the Oslo and Abraham Accords, all of which would fuel the flame of the attack on southern Israel.

On the 7th of October 2023, the Islamic Resistance Movement called Hamas which was created during the time of the first Intifada, attacked Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. The group described the attack as an outcome to decades of Israeli oppression, the killings of Palestinians, and years-long blockade of the Gaza Strip. They want to form a future independent state, but Israel's current government does not recognise the right of the Palestinians to do so, arguing that it would be a security threat.

In response, Israel launched a massive military offensive against Hamas in Gaza following the 7th October of 2023 attack. It began with air strikes and was followed by a ground invasion, eventually escalating into pure annihilation until the 9th of October 2025, the day that the ceasefire was declared. However, air strikes continued the following days despite a ceasefire in effect.

The Problem

What should have stayed a dispute between Hamas and Israeli officials has been exploited as justification for the erasure of Palestine and the Palestinian population as a whole. Evidence of genocidal acts committed by Israeli military operations in Gaza has been found by the United Nations Commission of Inquiry in September 2025 such as the killing of unprecedented numbers of Palestinians, blocking of humanitarian aid leading to starvation, systematic sexual and gender based violence, attacking religious and cultural sites, silencing hundreds of journalists, and disregarding the orders of the International Court of Justice. Carried out under the command of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from 7th of October 2023 until the 31st of July 2025, these heinous acts should not be ignored and cannot be justified. And while Hamas’ actions of targeting Israeli civilians and hostage-taking are acts of terror, they do not erase the deeper injustice that has made them react this way. Stating the wrongs on both sides does not mean treating them as equals. There is no symmetry between an occupying power and the occupied people. There is no fairness in bombs dropped from the sky and stones thrown as an act of defense. The recent air strikes made in Gaza despite the declared ceasefire, stands as a testimony of Israel’s continuous violation of international humanitarian law and exposes the emptiness of its commitment to peace.

Our Stand

The Innovator Jr. condemns the genocide committed by the Israeli government against the Palestinian people. While Hamas’ violence must also be held accountable, it cannot be used as a pretext to erase Gaza or the right of Palestinians to live freely. With the findings of the United Nations Commission of Inquiry highlighting the violence that Israel has done in the Gaza Strip, we denounce the continued bombing of civilian areas even after the ceasefire’s first phase was enacted as reported by news outlets such as the Anadolu Agency, Al-Manar TV Lebanon, and Middle East Eye, which includes acts that blatantly violate the principles of international humanitarian law and the very essence of human rights laid out through the framework made by the United Declaration of Human Rights of 1948.

A ceasefire does not equate to the freedom of the Palestinian people. It stops the bombs but not the blockade, the suffering from attacks but not the suffering from the rubble Palestinians have to go back to. Even as negotiations unfold between the two groups, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s refusal to recognize Palestine’s statehood during the United Nations on the 26th of September 2025 means that true liberation remains distant. Until Palestine’s sovereignty is acknowledged and its people are allowed to self-determination without Israel’s occupation, these agreements remain empty gestures; a performance. Peace written on paper, but not lived in practice.

As student journalists of The Innovator Jr., we believe that standing with Palestine is not a matter of politics or religion, but of principle. It is a commitment to the universal right of all people to live free from oppression. Furthermore, it is important to take note that our condemnation is directed at the Israeli government and military— not Jewish people, Antisemitism will never be accepted and tolerated in our organization. Likewise, we reject the use of Zionism or religious belief as a justification for human rights violations.

Our Message

To the Israeli government: A ceasefire is not peace but rather, it is merely an excuse for a military timeout. The repeated air strikes despite the declared ceasefire in effect shows a deliberate disregard for international law. History is recording, and the world is watching.

To our fellow journalists, we write as a witness of history: we will continue to tell and amplify the stories others try to silence. Through ink and insight, the truth will be told.

To the world: neutrality in the face of oppression is not peace, it is complicity. It is a sign of privilege.

To the people of Palestine: the world stands with you. Your struggle is seen, your voices are heard, and your fight for freedom endures.

As the official publication of the students and associates of FEU Diliman's Basic Education Department,

The Innovator Jr. stands with the truth, with humanity, and with the conviction:
From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.