Gaza Protests

UN food agency cuts aid to Palestinians in Gaza, West Bank amid fund crunch

The United Nations has cut food assistance to 5,00,000 Palestinians in Gaza and 2,00,000 in the West Bank due to a serious funding shortage, the head of the UN food agency said. Carl Skau, acting head of the World Food Program, on Monday urged the international community to provide USD 450 million so the agency could restore the cut assistance and provide hot meals and food parcels in Gaza and the West Bank for the next six months. Because of the money shortage, the number of people receiving assistance was reduced this month from 1.6 million to 1.1 million in Gaza and from 4,00,000 to 2,00,000 in the West Bank, he said. Skau, who had just visited both territories, told UN correspondents in a video briefing from Jerusalem that life in Gaza remains "absolutely brutal" and incredibly dangerous, with UN teams recording about 50 attacks per day in the past week. Nonetheless, he said that since last October's ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, "we have been able to push back on famine"

Judge bars deportation of Palestinian activist who led protests at Columbia

An immigration judge has blocked the Trump administration from deporting Mohsen Mahdawi, a Palestinian graduate student who led protests at Columbia University against Israel and the war in Gaza. In a ruling made public Tuesday, the judge, Nina Froes, said she had terminated the case because of a procedural misstep by government attorneys, who failed to properly certify an official document they intended to use as evidence. The Trump administration may appeal the decision. But the ruling marked the latest setback for the federal government's sweeping effort to expel pro-Palestinian campus activists and others who expressed criticism of Israel. Last month, a separate immigration blocked the government's attempt to deport a Tufts University graduate student, Rumeysa Ozturk, over an op-ed criticizing the school's response to the war in Gaza. Mahdawi, a legal permanent resident of the US for the last decade, was born in a refugee camp in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. He was arrested

Thousands protest in Italy for Gaza; Meloni condemns violence as 'shameful'

What began as peaceful marches in several cities of Italy quickly spiralled into violent confrontations between the demonstrators and police, leaving at least 60 police officers injured

Israelis protest for hostage deal as Gaza strikes kill 16 civilians

Protesters in Israel on Tuesday torched tires, blocked highways and clamoured for a ceasefire that would free hostages still in Gaza, as Israeli leaders pressed ahead with plans for an offensive which they argue is needed to crush Hamas. The disruption came as Palestinians in Gaza braced for the expanded offensive against a backdrop of displacement, destruction and parts of the territory plunging into famine. It also came a day after deadly strikes against Gaza's main hospital killed 20 people including medics and journalists, among them Mariam Dagga, a journalist who worked for The Associated Press. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to hold a security cabinet meeting later Tuesday, but it's unclear if he will discuss ceasefire efforts. He has said that Israel will launch an expanded offensive in Gaza City while simultaneously pursuing a ceasefire, though Israel has yet to send a negotiating team to discuss a proposal on the table. Netanyahu has said the offensive is th

Seeking to turning the tide in Gaza, global community calls out Israel

For the first time, four of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council are likely to extend recognition to Palestine (China and Russia being the other two), isolating the US

Strikes kill 94 Palestinians in Gaza, 45 waiting for aid, say authorities

Israeli airstrikes and shootings killed 94 Palestinians in Gaza late Wednesday and Thursday, including 45 who were attempting to get much-needed humanitarian aid, hospitals and the Health Ministry said Thursday. Families wept over the bodies from a strike that hit a tent camp during the night as displaced people slept in southern Gaza. At least 13 members of a single family were killed, including at least six children under 12. My children, my children my beloved, wailed Intisar Abu Assi, sobbing over the bodies of her son and daughters and their young children. Another woman kissed the forehead of a dead little girl wrapped in a blanket on the floor of the morgue at Nasser Hospital in the city of Khan Younis. In central Gaza, a boy stroked the face of his dead sister, 6-year-old Heba Abu Etiwi, in a morgue at Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Hospital. The girl and another of her brothers were among eight people killed when a strike Wednesday evening hit near a stand selling falafel. A separate .

Israel kills 27 Palestinians at Gaza aid site; UN calls it 'a war crime'

Israeli military says troops fired on 'a few Palestinians who left the designated route and ignored warning shots; calls them 'suspects' who posed a threat

Hamas seeks changes to Gaza ceasefire plan, US envoy calls it unacceptable

Hamas has responded to the latest US ceasefire proposal for Gaza while seeking amendments to it. A senior Hamas official tells The Associated Press that there some notes and amendments to some points, especially on the US guarantees, the timing of hostage release, the delivery of aid and the withdrawal of Israeli forces. The official spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the talks. A separate Hamas statement said the proposal aims for a permanent ceasefire, a comprehensive Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and an ensured flow of aid. It said 10 living hostages and the bodies of 18 others would be released in exchange for an agreed-upon number of Palestinian prisoners. Israeli officials have approved the US proposal for a temporary ceasefire in the nearly 20-month war. US President Donald Trump has said negotiators were nearing a deal.

Over 100 killed in Gaza as Israel hits 130 targets in 48 hours

Israeli strikes kill over 100 Palestinians in Gaza in 48 hours as ceasefire talks stall Netanyahu signals further escalation and aid plan faces global criticism

Palestinian president slams Hamas as 'sons of dogs', urges hostage release

Palestinian President Abbas demands release of Israeli hostages, disarmament, and Gaza handover to Palestinian Authority amid deepening factional rift

Israel intensifies strikes near Gaza hospital, kills 21 as Holy Week begins

A wave of Israeli strikes across Gaza on Sunday hit a hospital and other sites, killing at least 21 people, including children, as Israel vowed to expand its security presence in the small coastal strip. The predawn strike on Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City was the latest of several attacks on northern Gaza's last major hospital providing critical health care. Hospital director Dr. Fadel Naim said the emergency room, pharmacy and surrounding buildings were severely damaged, affecting over 100 patients and dozens of staff. One patient, a girl, died during the evacuation following an Israeli warning because staff were unable to provide urgent care, Gaza's Health Ministry said. Israel said it struck a Hamas command and control center at the hospital, without providing evidence. Hamas denied the allegations. Al-Ahli Hospital is run by the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem, which condemned the attack, saying in a statement it happened on Palm Sunday, the start of the Holy Week, the most sacr

Israeli airstrike on Gaza building kills at least 23, say health officials

Israeli aircraft struck a residential block in war-ravaged northern Gaza on Wednesday, killing at least 23 people, health officials said, as the renewed fighting in the devastated Palestinian enclave showed no signs of letting up. The Al-Ahly hospital said at least 23 people were killed in the strike, including eight women and eight children, figures confirmed by the territory's Health Ministry. The strike hit a four-story building in the Shijaiyah neighborhood of Gaza City and rescue teams were searching for victims under the rubble, according to the Health Ministry's emergency service. The civil defense, a rescue group which operates under the Hamas-run government, said other neighbouring buildings were damaged in the strike. The Israeli military said it struck a senior Hamas militant who it said was behind attacks emanating from Shijaiyah. It did not name him or provide further details. Israel blames the deaths of civilians on the militant group, because it embeds itself in dense

Israeli military calls up reservists as Gaza ceasefire tensions rise

Trump meanwhile wants Saudi Arabia, which has vast influence in other Arab and Muslim countries, to normalise ties with Israel

Won't establish ties with Israel without Palestinian state: Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia refutes Donald Trump's claim that it hasn't insisted on a Palestinian state, reaffirming no Israel ties without it; Trump also proposed a US takeover and redevelopment of Gaza

China, Russia support Gaza ceasefire, hope for permanent peace, stability

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said Thursday that Beijing welcomes the Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal and hopes it can be "effectively implemented so a comprehensive and permanent ceasefire in Gaza can be achieved". China will continue to provide humanitarian assistance to Gaza and make "positive efforts" for post-war reconstruction, he added. "We also sincerely hope that the relevant parties will take the Gaza ceasefire as an opportunity to promote the easing of local tensions. China is willing to work with the international community to make unremitting efforts to promote peace and stability in the Middle East," Guo said.

McDonald's sees sales slump in India amid ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict

McDonald's India faces a steep sales decline due to geopolitical turmoil in West Asia, with some stores in West and South India seeing sales drop to less than half of pre-crisis levels

India, Israel aligned in condemning terrorism: Israeli Embassy spokesperson

When asked how long is the conflict going to last, he said that even they didn't want this to prolong

Israelis protest again over govt's failure to bring hostages back from Gaza

Israelis again poured into the streets for another large protest over the government's failure to secure the return of remaining hostages in Gaza, while hospital and local authorities said Israeli air raids in the territory killed more than a dozen people overnight into Saturday. Health workers wrapped up the second phase of an urgent polio vaccination campaign designed to prevent a large-scale outbreak. The drive, launched after the first polio case in the Palestinian enclave in 25 years, aims to vaccinate 640,000 children during a war that has destroyed Gaza's health care system and much of its infrastructure. The third phase of vaccinations will be in the north. Israel kept up its military offensive. In central Gaza's urban refugee camp of Nuseirat, Al-Awda Hospital said it received the bodies of nine people killed in two air raids. One hit a residential building, killing four people and wounding at least 10, while five people were killed in a strike on a house in western ...

Paris Olympics 2024: Israeli athletes receive threats amid Gaza conflict

Olympics 2024: Last week, Paris prosecutors initiated an investigation into death threats sent via email to Israeli athletes

Israeli protesters block highways, call for ceasefire to return hostages

Marking nine months since the war in Gaza started, Israeli protesters blocked highways across the country on Sunday, calling on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to step down and pushing for a ceasefire to bring back scores of hostages held by Hamas. The demonstrations come as long-running efforts to broker a truce gained momentum last week when Hamas dropped a key demand for an Israeli commitment to end the war. The militant group still wants mediators to guarantee a permanent ceasefire, while Netanyahu is vowing to keep fighting until Israel destroys Hamas' military and governing capabilities. "Any deal will allow Israel to return and fight until all the goals of the war are achieved," Netanyahu said in a statement on Sunday that was likely to deepen Hamas' concerns about the proposal. Sunday's "Day of Disruption" started at 6:29 am, the same time Hamas militants launched the first rockets toward Israel in the October 7 attack that triggered the war. Protesters blocked main roads