Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

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Advocacy – New Zealand Activists Abducted – PFNZ

Source: Palestine Forum of New Zealand (PFNZ)

The Palestine Forum of New Zealand expresses its deep alarm and outrage at the abduction of Rana Hamida, Samuel Leason, and Youssef Sammour. These three New Zealanders, committed to justice and human rights, have been unlawfully taken while engaging in peaceful advocacy for Palestine.

Their abduction is a grave violation of international law and human rights principles. It is an attempt to silence voices of solidarity and to intimidate those who stand against injustice.

We call on the New Zealand Government to take urgent and decisive action to ensure the immediate and safe release of Youssef, Rana, and Samuel. As citizens of this country, their protection and freedom must be a matter of the highest priority.

We further urge the international community to join in condemning this abduction and to hold those responsible accountable. The world cannot remain silent while peaceful activists are targeted for standing up for justice.

The Palestine Forum of New Zealand stands firmly with Youssef, Rana, and Samuel, and with all who are unjustly detained for their commitment to freedom and human dignity.

They must be released immediately.

Palestine Forum of New Zealand

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Health – KEYTRUDA® (pembrolizumab) for certain patients with high risk early-stage triple negative breast cancer (eTNBC) now on Pharmac’s waitlist

Source: Merck Sharp & Dohme (New Zealand)  (MSD)

Auckland, New Zealand, 3 October 2025 – October is breast cancer awareness month, and Merck Sharp & Dohme (New Zealand) Limited (MSD) (tradename of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, N.J., USA (NYSE: MRK) is pleased to share that KEYTRUDA, an immunotherapy medicine for the treatment of certain patients with high-risk early-stage triple negative breast cancer (eTNBC), has been added to Pharmac’s Options for Investment list, (OFI) meaning it can be considered for public funding. 1

MSD Director, Vanessa Gascoigne, says, “The inclusion of KEYTRUDA for eTNBC on Pharmac’s OFI list is good news, and we are pleased to announce this, during Breast Cancer Awareness month. 1

“TNBC, which accounts for approximately 15% of all breast cancers, is an aggressive type of invasive breast cancer that tends to grow and spread faster than other types of breast cancer and has a poorer prognosis. 2,3 TNBC has fewer treatment options compared to other types of breast cancer as it lacks receptors that can be targeted by medications such as hormone and HER2-blocking drugs.2

“KEYTRUDA has been funded for certain patients with advanced triple negative breast cancer since October 2024, and we are now working with Pharmac, trying to extend funded access for certain people diagnosed at an earlier stage of this challenging disease.” 4

Breast Cancer Foundation NZ Chief Executive, Ah-Leen Rayner, added: “New Zealanders with high-risk early-stage triple-negative breast cancer need funded access to more treatment options. We hope Pharmac can widen access to KEYTRUDA so that eligible Kiwis with this aggressive type of breast cancer can have funded access to another treatment option.”

Vanessa Gascoigne, MSD New Zealand Director, adds “As of September 29th there are 122 other medicine applications on the Options for Investment list, waiting to be funded. 1 We will continue to work closely with Pharmac to try and progress this application for funding Keytruda for certain patients with high-risk early-stage TNBC.”

Consumer Mandatories

KEYTRUDA® (pembrolizumab) is available as a 100 mg/4 mL concentrate for solution for infusion.

KEYTRUDA is a Prescription Medicine and may be used in certain adults:

  • After surgery to remove melanoma, non-small cell lung cancer or renal cell carcinoma to help prevent the cancer from coming back
  • Before surgery to treat non-small cell lung cancer or triple-negative breast cancer and then continued after surgery to help prevent the cancer from coming back
  • To treat bladder cancer which has not spread to nearby tissues but is at high-risk of spreading and where bladder removal is not preferred
  • To treat the following types of advanced cancers: melanoma, non-small cell lung cancer, malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM), classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL), urothelial carcinoma, head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, renal cell carcinoma, gastric or gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma, oesophageal carcinoma, cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, cervical cancer, endometrial carcinoma, triple-negative breast cancer,  merkel cell carcinoma (MCC), biliary tract carcinoma, or a kind of cancer that can occur anywhere in the body, including the colon or rectum, and is shown by a laboratory test to be microsatellite instability-high (MSI-H) or mismatch repair deficient (dMMR).

KEYTRUDA may be used to treat certain children with MPM, cHL, MCC, or MSI-H/dMMR cancer. It is not known if KEYTRUDA is safe and effective in children with MSI-H or dMMR cancer of the brain or spinal cord (central nervous system cancers). Children may also receive KEYTRUDA after surgery to remove melanoma.

KEYTRUDA can cause your immune system to attack normal organs and tissues in any area of your body and can affect the way they work. These side effects can sometimes become life-threatening and can lead to death. These side effects may happen anytime during treatment or even after your treatment has ended. You may experience more than one side effect at the same time.

KEYTRUDA can cause some serious side effects. Serious side effects may include: lung problems, intestinal problems, liver problems, hormone gland problems, blood sugar problems, kidney problems, skin problems, problems in other organs and tissues, infusion reactions that can sometimes be severe, rejection of a transplanted organ or tissue, and complications in people with a bone marrow transplant that uses donor stem cells (allogeneic). These are not all of the signs and symptoms of immune system problems that can happen with KEYTRUDA. Getting medical treatment right away may help keep these problems from becoming more serious.

You should not be given KEYTRUDA if you are allergic to pembrolizumab or to any of the other ingredients.

If you are pregnant, think you may be pregnant or are planning to have a baby, tell your doctor. KEYTRUDA can cause harm or death to your unborn baby. You must use effective contraception while you are being treated with KEYTRUDA and for at least 4 months after the last dose of KEYTRUDA if you are a woman who could become pregnant. Do not breastfeed while taking KEYTRUDA.

Very common side effects of KEYTRUDA include diarrhoea, nausea, itching, rash, joint pain, back pain, feeling tired, cough, patches of discoloured skin, stomach pain, decreased levels of sodium in blood, and low levels of thyroid hormone.

The side effects listed below are additional common side effects that may occur when KEYTRUDA is given together with another treatment, in addition to the very common side effects listed above.

With chemotherapy or chemotherapy + radiotherapy: hair loss, vomiting, decreased number of red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets in the blood, mouth sores, fever, decreased appetite, and swelling of the lining of the digestive system (for example mouth, intestines).

With axitinib: high blood pressure, decreased appetite, blisters or rash on palms of your hands and soles of your feet, increased liver enzyme levels, hoarseness, and constipation.

With lenvatinib: high blood pressure, decreased appetite, vomiting, weight loss, headache, constipation, hoarseness, urinary tract infection, stomach-area (abdominal pain), blisters or rash on the palms of your hands and soles of your feet, protein in your urine, increased liver enzyme levels, and feeling weak.

In children, common side effects of KEYTRUDA include fever, vomiting, headache, stomach pain, decreased number of red blood cells, cough, and constipation. (v59)

These are not all of the possible side effects of KEYTRUDA. If you have any side effects, talk to your doctor.

KEYTRUDA has risks and benefits. Talk to your doctor about whether KEYTRUDA is a suitable treatment option for you. For more information about KEYTRUDA refer to the Consumer Medicine Information available at www.medsafe.govt.nz/consumers/cmi/k/Keytruda.pdf  

KEYTRUDA is funded to treat certain patients with the following cancers: melanoma, non-small cell lung cancer, MSI-H or dMMR colorectal cancer, triple-negative breast cancer, head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, urothelial carcinoma, and cHL. Patients must meet specific criteria to qualify for funding.

If KEYTRUDA is not funded for your particular cancer, you will need to pay the full cost of the medicine and its administration. Talk to your doctor about whether you qualify for funding, the cost of the medicine, and any other fees that may apply.

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Employment and Health – Mental health workers say they’ve had enough – vote to strike on 23 October – PSA

Source: PSA

More than 3,500 mental health and public health nurses and mental health assistants have voted to strike for 24 hours on Thursday 23 October in support of their claim for better pay and conditions.
The workers, who are PSA members, voted overwhelmingly to take strike action following the failure of Health NZ Te Whatu Ora to meet their concerns about safe staffing levels and make a pay offer that reflects their value to the health system. They have been bargaining for the past year.
The strike will run from 7am Thursday 23 October to 6.59am Friday 24 October.
They join more than 11,500 Allied Health workers who are striking from midnight to midnight on 23 October.
“The Government must fund health services properly, so that workers have enough money to live on and can continue to help New Zealanders facing challenges,” said Fleur Fitzsimons, National Secretary for the Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi.
The members are registered mental health nurses and public health nurses – including those working in community and in-patient areas, and mental health assistants who work in in-patient units and in some areas in the community.
“These nurses and mental health assistants work in some of the most demanding parts of the public health system, yet after bargaining for a year, their concerns about staffing levels and fair pay have fallen on deaf ears.”
PSA delegate and community mental health nurse Monique Larsen said the strike action is as much for patients and their families as it is for frontline workers.
“We can’t keep going the way we are now. We’re constantly trying to look after patients with absolute minimum levels of staffing – it’s not sustainable.
“We nurses and mental health assistants are reluctant to do this, but we’ve run out of patience with Health NZ and the Government.
“Our communities’ mental and public health needs have increased significantly post COVID – the impact post-pandemic has been overlooked. We’ve seen a massive increase of drug and addiction issues putting heaps of pressure on our mental health and addictions and ED services.
“We’re really worried about the whaiora who will slip through the cracks if we don’t properly resource services now and look after our existing and future healthcare workers. At current levels, we’re putting the health of our patients at risk.”
PSA delegate and registered mental health nurse Roy Bicknell said the nurses have been at the bargaining table for over a year with little to show for it.
“We don’t take industrial action lightly – we have patients relying on us for help. But when Health NZ has repeatedly refused to meet us on key health and safety issues, we don’t see any other option.
“Every day I see staff battle to provide quality healthcare in unsafe working environments, with few policies or procedures to support them. We want Health NZ and the Government to listen to workers and understand the real issues here and then commit to properly funding the healthcare system so we can all benefit.”
Fleur Fitzsimson said; “If these essential health workers are not properly valued, more will leave for Australia – that doesn’t serve anyone well.” 
The Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi is Aotearoa New Zealand's largest trade union, representing and supporting more than 95,000 workers across central government, state-owned enterprises, local councils, health boards and community groups.
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Household living-costs price indexes − update


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Price index methods – updates for the September 2025 quarter – Stats NZ methods paper


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Advocacy – New Zealand government urged to demand Israel release humanitarian boats to Gaza – PSNA

Source: Palestinian Solidarity Network Aotearoa (PSNA)

 

PSNA is calling for the New Zealand government to demand Israel release the activists kidnapped from the global flotilla in international waters and allow them to sail to Gaza with humanitarian aid for the people under Israel’s genocide.

 

There are four New Zealand activists in the group of ships intercepted by Israel and some have been kidnapped by Israel already from boats in international water.

 

These New Zealanders represent the absolute best of our country – taking part in an aid mission to millions of people suffering a genocide in Gaza.

“Our government must stand beside them and insist their humanitarian mission must continue”

 

“Our government has failed to hold Israel to account for genocide but it can stand by other New Zealanders and demand Israel allow them to deliver aid to Gaza.

 

Bianca Webb-Pullman  

New Zealander Bianca Webb-Pullman (a medical doctor) is on the flotilla and the boat she is on (the “Florida”) has been rammed by an Israeli naval vessel. Bianca has thrown her phone overboard and the boat is on its way again. 

 

Media can speak with Bianca’s partner Stephen Rowe in Raumati South on 0211177379.

 

Rallies around NZ

Various events are being held around the country including a rally in Ōtautahi/Christchurch at 5pm at the Bridge of Remembrance this evening (see poster below) where large posters will identify our political leaders who are complicit with genocide.

 

John Minto

Co-Chair PSNA

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Advocacy – Global Sumud Flotilla Amnesty International Statement

Source: Amnesty International Aotearoa New Zealand

Amnesty International STATEMENT
02 October 2025 – In response to reports that Israeli forces have intercepted the Global Sumud Flotilla and detained peaceful protestors, including three New Zealanders, attempting to deliver urgently needed food, medicine, and humanitarian supplies to Palestinians in Gaza, Amnesty International Aotearoa New Zealand’s Executive Director, Jacqui Dillon, said:
“The complete absence of any remotely adequate response from governments, including New Zealand’s, to Israel’s genocide against Palestinians has forced activists from across the world to take peaceful measures to break the siege.
Our Government must act. Their job is to immediately condemn this interception, demand the immediate and unconditional release of all those on board, including any New Zealand nationals, and insist that Israel ends its unlawful blockade and allows unrestricted humanitarian access to occupied Gaza. Anything less risks complicity in Israel’s grave violations of Palestinians' rights.
The New Zealand Government must do all it can to end this genocide. The atrocities must end.”
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Advocacy: Oxfam – Palestine recognition must come with action: to save lives, States must stop Israel’s crimes and ensure Palestinian agency

Source: Oxfam Aotearoa

Statement by independent groups
Most countries recognize Palestinian statehood, yet Israel’s international law violations are accelerating, with near-total impunity, causing mass displacement, widespread death, and an escalating humanitarian crisis throughout the occupied Palestinian territory . For real impact and to avoid complicity, States must turn their expressions of solidarity into concrete, life-saving action, and any plans for a way forward must place Palestinians as the main architects of their own future.
Statehood recognition is an important, welcome step in the realization of the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination. It cannot remain symbolic or be treated as a reward. Importantly, it doesn’t absolve Member States of their legal and moral obligations to put an end to the Israeli occupation in the occupied Palestinian territory (Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem) – which the International Court of Justice has determined to be illegal and in violation of Palestinians’ right to self-determination – and to stop what the UN Commission of Inquiry has determined to be a genocide carried out by Israel in Gaza.
The escalating humanitarian crisis driven by these actions is widely known and documented. Just in the past two years, Israeli eviction orders, demolitions, blockages, arbitrary arrests and direct attacks on people, have triggered the largest forced displacement in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since the start of the occupation in 1967. The largest land theft in three decades was officially approved last year, and violence by settlers is at an all-time high. In Gaza, Israeli authorities have been carrying out a deadly military operation that has killed or injured over 136,000 people, forced 2 million people to flee several times, and destroyed 90% of the buildings. Throughout Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, Israeli forces have attacked health facilities close to 1,650 times. They have restricted free movement – through military checkpoints, gates, barriers, corridors and no-go zones – with devastating consequences on communities’ ability to access livelihoods, medical care, education and other vital services.
World leaders cannot claim ignorance. Even as 4 in 5 countries globally recognize the State of Palestine, the Israeli parliament recently approved a motion to completely annex the West Bank including East Jerusalem, where 3.3 million Palestinians live, and Israeli officials have reiterated their intention to pursue “complete sovereignty” over the West Bank, stating that “there is no Palestinian people and no Palestinian State” and that “the place belongs to [Israelis]”. Similar intentions have been openly declared for all of Gaza.
Such declarations are no longer fringe: they show what is driving the accelerated erasure of a people. Israel’s fragmentation and annexation of land internationally recognized as Palestinian is rendering the prospect of a viable Palestinian State less and less realistic.
Acting is not optional. The International Court of Justice clarified in July 2024 that all UN Member States are obligated to not recognize or support Israel’s unlawful occupation, including through trade and investments. Moreover, the UN Commission of Inquiry has determined that all States must “take all necessary steps to try to avoid or stop the commission of genocide”.
Just in the few weeks that have passed since several additional countries recognized the State of Palestine, hundreds of Palestinians have been killed and more than 1,500 have been injured by Israeli fire across the occupied Palestinian territory. The military takeover of Gaza City has accelerated in scope and brutality: deadly strikes on tents, housing units and public buildings have forced tens of thousands to flee once more, though most people have nowhere to go; several health care facilities in the north have had to shut down leaving hundreds of thousands with very limited access to medical care. In the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, settler attacks and military incursions and arrests have intensified. Dozens of Palestinian structures have been demolished. The Israeli parliament’s National Security Committee has advanced discussions to restrict humanitarian access to prisons where over 9,500 Palestinians are held as well as a law to authorize the death penalty for detainees.
With each hour of delay, another family is shattered, another child starves, another home is reduced to dust, another piece of Palestinian life is erased.
To avoid the outcome of having a State of Palestine without Palestinians, and to prevent Israeli forces and settlers from taking additional punitive action against communities, States must use every available political, economic, and legal tool at their disposal for:
  • An immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, and for Palestinians to own and lead their own (re)construction plans and process, in line with their inalienable right to self-determination
  • An end to Israel’s illegal occupation of the entire occupied Palestinian territory, ensuring the conditions needed for Palestinians to stay in their land
  • Unrestricted UN-coordinated humanitarian access and protection, as enshrined in international humanitarian law, throughout the occupied Palestinian territory
  • An end to trade with illegal settlements, including the provision of services and investments
  • An immediate halt to all arms sales and transfers to Israel
  • Accountability for crimes committed
  • The immediate reopening of a corridor linking Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, for medical evacuations and other purposes.
Endorsed by (alphabetical order):
  • 1. ActionAid International
  • 2. Al Awda Health and Community Association
  • 3. American Friends Service Committee (AFSC)
  • 4. Arab Educational Institute – Pax Christi Palestine
  • 5. Bystanders No More
  • 6. Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP)
  • 7. CIDSE – International Family of Catholic Social Justice Organisations
  • 8. Emmaus International
  • 9. Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
  • 10. Global Legal Action Network (GLAN)
  • 11. HelpAge International
  • 12. Insecurity Insight
  • 13. Médecins du Monde International Network (MdM)
  • 14. Norwegian People’s Aid
  • 15. Oxfam International
  • 16. PARC – Agricultural Development Association
  • 17. Pax Christi International
  • 18. Palestinian Institute for Climate Strategy (PICS)
  • 19. Plateforme des ONG françaises pour la Palestine
  • 20. Sabeel-Kairos UK
  • 21. The Middle East Children's Alliance
  • 22. Terre des Hommes Italy
  • 23. United Against Inhumanity
NOTES
  • In 2025, Israeli policies and practices have forced at least 40,000 Palestinians out of their homes in the northern West Bank – all-time high since Israeli occupation began in 1967 – due to Israeli-ordered demolitions, evictions, and increasing attacks by settlers and armed forces. Another 66,800 at least face a direct risk of forcible transfer, as about 663 km 2 of West Bank land is vulnerable to settlement takeover and expansion.
  • Israeli authorities have approved the largest land theft in the West Bank in three decades in July 2024, as well as the construction of over 15,000 units and 22 new illegal settlements in 2025 alone, and established over 121 new outposts. Weeks ago, Israeli authorities gave final approval for the “E1” settlement project, which is effectively cutting off East Jerusalem from the occupied West Bank and further fragmenting the land.
  • For two years, Israeli forces have bombed Gaza relentlessly. The military operation has killed at least 66,000, injured 170,000 and forced close to 2 million people to flee repeatedly. Over 92% of housing units and 90% of school buildings are now destroyed and only 1.5% of cropland is now usable as a result.
  • Since 2007, Israeli authorities have blocked the entry of vital goods into Gaza, including an 11-week complete siege this year that has led to extreme starvation, with famine confirmed in northern Gaza, and severe shortages in health facilities.
  • Israeli forces have attacked health care facilities close to 1,650 times across the occupied Palestinian territory since October 2023.
  • Israeli authorities have imposed countless movement restrictions across the occupied Palestinian territory in the form of militarized corridors, checkpoints and no-go zones in Gaza (82% of the land is now inaccessible), and over 800 gates, checkpoints and barriers in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, with devastating consequences on people’s ability to access livelihoods, health care, education and other vital services.
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Advocacy – Protest Israel’s attack on humanitarian flotilla to Gaza – 5pm Bridge of Remembrance TODAY Oct 2

Source: Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa (PSNA)

Protest Israel's attack on humanitarian flotilla to Gaza – 5pm Bridge of Remembrance TODAY Oct 2. 

Four New Zealanders are on this group of boats…

Nothing from our PM or Foreign Minister yet about this kidnapping of New Zealanders who have stepped up when our government has refused.

(PSNA has made two appeals in the last month to the government but as usual no response)

John Minto
Co National Chair
Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa

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Defence News – Auckland school’s Services Academy sparks NZ Army career for electrician

Source: New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF)

As a teenager, Lance Corporal Elia Fata didn’t really know what career he wanted to take up, but getting involved in Onehunga High School’s Services Academy put him on a path that has taken him around the world – leading to his latest task helping to improve the lives of people in the Cook Islands.

Lance Corporal Fata, a member of the New Zealand Army’s 25 Engineer Support Squadron, 2 Engineer Regiment, is overseeing electrical tasks for Exercise Tropic Twilight on the small island of Ma’uke, population about 240. It’s his second stint of work in the Pacific following a trip to Tonga earlier this year.

He has been leading a team of six electricians, including personnel from Australia and Vanuatu, as they tackled upgrades and maintenance of bore pumps and the island’s solar farm and school.

The work, funded by New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, involved replacing water pumps and replacing switches to ensure the six pumps were not constantly pumping, which was wasting water and wearing them out quicker.

“We work mainly on residential, but this is bigger. Same concept but bigger scale,” Lance Corporal Fata said.

“It was a bit overwhelming in the beginning but once I got my head around it, it made sense.”

Part of his role was assessing where each of the individual’s electrical knowledge was at and how to allocate work from there.

Lance Corporal Fata said the exercise had its challenges. Ma’uke is about 277 kilometres northeast of Rarotonga and most of the materials had to be brought in by aircraft or boat.

“We are quite limited with resources. We don’t have the luxury of a supply store. We are working with what we have and trying to deliver the same outcome.”

However, making a meaningful difference for the people of Ma’uke was a motivation.

“They are lovely people, very friendly and make you feel like one of them. They have welcomed us with open arms, which makes me more driven and motivated to get these jobs done for them.”

Lance Corporal Fata is Samoan and was enjoying the hospitality and food on Ma’uke.

“It feels like home. All the elderly people here remind me of my parents and grandparents and you show them the same level of respect, which I think is appreciated.”

It was Onehunga High School’s Services Academy, run in partnership with the New Zealand Defence Force’s Youth Development Unit, which inspired him to join the NZ Army.

He enlisted in 2015 when he was 20 and initially trained as a gunner, posting to Manawatū-based 16th Field Regiment. He became a mortar detachment commander and spent a lot of time at Waiouru Military Training Area.

“But once I had a family, I felt I needed to spend more time at home, hence the trade change to be a sparkie.”

Lance Corporal Fata’s career has allowed him to attend multinational exercises in Hawaii, centenary anniversary commemorations for the Battle of Messines in Belgium in 2017, and more recently carrying out electrical work in Tonga and now the Cook Islands.

“The Services Academy just painted a picture, and I thought, yes I’ll go for that. I’ve never looked back.”