Page 4 - Gaza Protests

UAE president, WHO chief discuss cooperation and health challenges in Gaza

The WHO Director-General congratulated the UAE president on the successful hosting of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP28) in the UAE at the end of last year

UN appoints former Dutch deputy premier as Gaza humanitarian coordinator

Sigrid Kaag, the Netherlands' former deputy prime minister and a Mideast expert, was appointed the UN coordinator for humanitarian aid to war-torn Gaza, the United Nations chief announced on Tuesday. The announcement by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres follows the Security Council's adoption of a resolution on Friday requesting him to expeditiously appoint a senior humanitarian and reconstruction coordinator for Gaza, where more than 2 million civilians are in desperate need of food, water and medicine, Guterres said Kaag, who speaks fluent Arabic and five other languages, brings a wealth of experience in political, humanitarian and development affairs as well as in diplomacy to her new post. She is expected to start on January 8. She will facilitate, coordinate, monitor, and verify humanitarian relief consignments to Gaza, he said, adding that Kaag will also establish a UN mechanism to accelerate aid deliveries "through states which are not party to the conflict. Gaza's enti

UNSC adopts UAE's resolution on scaling up, monitoring aid to Gaza

The resolution calls for urgent steps to immediately allow safe, unhindered, and expanded humanitarian access and for a sustainable cessation of hostilities in the Gaza Strip

More than 20,000 Palestinians killed in Israel-Hamas war: Gaza officials

Health officials in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip say more than 20,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war between Israel and Hamas. The figure, amounting to nearly 1% of the territory's prewar population, is a new reflection of the staggering cost of the war, which in just over 10 weeks has displaced more than 80% of Gaza's people and devastated wide swaths of the tiny coastal enclave. Gaza's Health Ministry said Friday that it has documented 20,057 deaths in the fighting. It does not differentiate between combatant and civilian deaths. It has previously said that roughly two-thirds of the dead were women or minors.

US, allies avoiding another veto of UN resolution on critical aid for Gaza

The United States, key allies and Arab nations engaged in high-level diplomacy in hopes of avoiding another US veto of a new UN resolution on desperately needed aid to Gaza ahead of a long-delayed vote now scheduled for Thursday morning. The US has been struggling to change the text's references to a cessation of hostilities in the Israel-Hamas war. Another sticking point is the inspection of aid trucks into Gaza to ensure they are only carrying humanitarian goods. The current draft proposes a U.N. role, an idea Israel is likely to oppose. US President Joe Biden told reporters on his way back from Milwaukee, Wisconsin late Wednesday afternoon that we're negotiating right now at the UN the contours of a resolution that we may be able to agree to. Ambassador Lana Nusseibeh of the United Arab Emirates, which sponsored the Arab-backed resolution, said earlier that high-level discussions are underway to try to reach agreement on a text that can be adopted. Everyone wants to see a ...

UNSC resolution on Gaza conflict hampered by issues important to US

The Security Council's adoption of a new UN resolution to spur desperately needed aid to Gaza has been bogged down by two issues important to the United States: a reference to a cessation of hostilities and putting the UN in charge of inspecting trucks to ensure they are actually carrying humanitarian goods. A vote on the Arab-sponsored resolution, first postponed from Monday, was pushed back again until Wednesday as council members continued intense negotiations to avoid another veto by the United States. We're still working through the modalities of the resolution, US National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said Tuesday afternoon when the vote was still set for 5 p.m. It's important for us that the rest of the world understand what's at stake here and what Hamas did on the 7th of October and how Israel has a right to defend itself against those threats. It was cancelled as the US asked for more time and is now scheduled to take place after an open council briefing follow

Israel strikes south Gaza, raids hospital in north amid renewed US support

Israeli strikes killed at least 28 Palestinians in southern Gaza and troops raided one of the last functioning hospitals in the north as the country pressed ahead with its offensive against Hamas on Tuesday with renewed backing from the United States, despite rising international alarm. The offensive, launched in response to Hamas' October 7 attack into Israel, has killed nearly 20,000 Palestinians, displaced some 1.9 million, demolished much of northern Gaza and sparked attacks on US and Israeli targets across the region. Attacks on ships in the Red Sea by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels have led major shipping companies as well as the oil and gas giant BP to suspend trade through the vital waterway, prompting the US and its allies to launch a new mission to counter the threat. But after meeting with Israeli officials Monday, Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said he was not here to dictate timelines or terms." His remarks signalled that the US would continue shielding Israel fro

UNSC delays vote on resolution urging cessation of hostilities in Gaza

The UN Security Council delayed until Tuesday morning a vote on an Arab-sponsored resolution calling for a halt to hostilities in Gaza to allow for urgently needed aid deliveries to a massive number of civilians as members intensified negotiations to try to avoid another veto by the United States. The council said Monday's 5 p.m. EST vote would not take place, and diplomats said negotiations were taking place to get the United States, Israel's closest ally, to abstain or vote yes on the resolution. A key issue is how to implement and sustain a desperately needed aid operation. Human Rights Watch accused Israel earlier Monday of deliberately starving Gaza's population by blocking the delivery of water, food and fuel, a method of warfare that it described as a war crime. The United Nations' food agency reported on December 14 that 56 per cent of Gaza's households were experiencing severe levels of hunger, up from 38 per cent two weeks earlier. The draft on the table on Monday morning

Israeli president says 'two-state solution' not a solution: What is it?

The two-state solution means establishing two separate states for the people of two communities, i.e., Israel for the Jewish and Palestine for the Palestinian people

President Biden urges Israeli caution as leaders eye 'lower-intensity' war

Biden has delivered increasingly urgent appeals to Israel to exercise restraint in its Gaza offensive following Hamas's Oct. 7 attack

Threatened by Hezbollah, Israel seeks solution for empty North: Report

Calls for Gaza evacuations; refugee camp reportedly hit

Aid supplies to Gaza on pause, UN sees imminent 'starvation': Report

Israel said its troops had found a tunnel shaft used by Hamas at Al Shifa hospital in the north of the Gaza Strip

Israel-Hamar was: IDF to transfer incubators to hospitals in Gaza Strip

The IDF further stated in its post that Israel is doing everything to minimize harm to civilians and facilitate the transfer of medical supplies and food

Israel agrees to 4-hour daily pauses in Gaza to allow civilians to flee

The White House said Israel has agreed to put in place four-hour daily humanitarian pauses in its assault on Hamas in northern Gaza starting on Thursday, as the Biden administration said it has secured a second pathway for civilians to flee fighting. President Joe Biden had asked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to institute the daily pauses during a Monday call. US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said that the first humanitarian pause would be announced Thursday and that the Israelis had committed to announcing each four-hour window at least three hours in advance. Israel, he said, also was opening a second corridor for civilians to flee the areas that are the current focus of its military campaign against Hamas, with a coastal road joining the territory's main north-south highway. Biden also told reporters that he had asked the Israelis for a pause longer than three days during negotiations over the release of some hostages held by Hamas, though he said the

UK's Suella Braverman in war of words with police over Israel-Gaza protests

UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman has launched a war of words with the Metropolitan Police with a tough-talking newspaper article on Thursday that accuses the force of not tackling the hate marchers protesting on the streets of London against the Israel-Hamas conflict. The Indian-origin Cabinet minister has come under strong criticism from the Opposition benches for accusing the country's largest police force of having a double standard in dealing with aggression during the protests, by ignoring some actions of pro-Palestinian protesters. In a warning to the police, Braverman pointed out that if a planned pro-Palestinian protest march goes ahead this weekend, an assertive and proactive approach to any displays of hate will be expected from the officers on duty. There have been dignified vigils in London held by Britain's Jewish community, but that is not what has tested our capacity to maintain public order, Braverman wrote in The Times' newspaper. It is the pro-Palestinian moveme

Israeli troops divide Gaza Strip into two; internet cut for third time

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said that the Israeli troops have encircled Gaza City and divided the territory into two, cutting internet and phone lines for the third time since the war began

IDF tanks reach strategic intersection on main road in Gaza City

This is the furthest inside the Strip that Israeli forces have reportedly been seen. The intersection is a strategic point that dominates the thoroughfare

When will humanity wake up: Priyanka Gandhi on cycle of bloodshed in Gaza

Slamming the cycle of violence in Gaza, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Friday said there is no international law that has not been violated there and asked when will humanity wake up. According to media reports, the rising death toll in Gaza is unprecedented in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Health Ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza said Thursday that more than 7,000 Palestinians have died in the conflict. In a post in Hindi on X, Priyanka Gandhi said that even after the killing of 7,000 people in Gaza, the cycle of bloodshed and violence has not stopped. Out of these 7,000 people, 3,000 were innocent children, she noted. "There is no international law that has not been trampled upon. There is no such limit which has not been crossed. There is no such rule which has not been flouted," Priyanka Gandhi said. "When will humanity wake up? After losing how many lives. After sacrificing how many children. Does the consciousness of being human remain? Did it ever

Israeli troops, tanks launch hourslong ground raid into northern Gaza

Israeli troops and tanks launched an hourslong ground raid into northern Gaza overnight into Thursday, the military said, striking several militant targets in order to "prepare the battlefield" before a widely expected ground invasion after more than two weeks of devastating airstrikes. The raid came after the UN warned that's it's on the verge of running out of fuel in the Gaza Strip, forcing it to sharply curtail relief efforts in the territory, which has also been under a complete siege since Hamas' bloody rampage across southern Israel ignited the war earlier this month. The rising death tolls in Gaza are unprecedented in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Even greater loss of life could come if Israel launches an expected ground offensive aimed at crushing Hamas, which has ruled Gaza since 2007 and survived four previous wars with Israel. The Health Ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza said on Wednesday that more than 750 people were killed over the past 24 hours, higher t

2nd batch of Indian nationals to fly out of Israel on Friday evening

After safely evacuating 212 Indian nationals from Israel, the Indian Embassy in Tel Aviv is facilitating more flights, including one on Friday evening, amidst the Israel-Hamas conflict. India launched 'Operation Ajay' on Thursday to facilitate the return of those who wish to return home following the brazen attacks on Israeli towns by Hamas militants from Gaza on October 7, triggering fresh tension in the region. The Embassy has emailed the next lot of registered Indian citizens for the special flight today. Messages to other registered people will follow for subsequent flights, the Indian Embassy posted the announcement on X. The first charter flight to facilitate the return of Indian citizens from Israel left late Thursday evening from the Ben Gurion airport carrying 211 adults and an infant living in the war-battered region and reached the Indian capital on Friday morning. The passengers were chosen on a first come first serve basis after a drive launched by the Indian embassy f