Israeli Air Force pilots write letter to end the war
Around 1,200 current and former Air Force pilots have signed this letter, including Retired Israeli Air Force pilot Guy Poran.
'We air force people demand the return of the hostages home without delay, even at the price of stopping the war immediately,' Mr Poran said.
'At this time, the war serves primarily political and personal interests and not security ones.
Their campaign is growing, with other parts of the Israeli military starting their own open letter campaigns.
The Israeli government insists the war must go on to destroy Hamas.

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West Australian
an hour ago
- West Australian
Why France is recognising Palestinian statehood
French President Emmanuel Macron has announced he will recognise Palestinian statehood, drawing angry rebukes from Israel and the United States and opening the door for other major nations to perhaps follow suit. WHAT DID MACRON SAY? Macron published a letter sent to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas confirming France's intention to press ahead with recognition and work to convince other partners to do the same He said he would make a formal announcement at the United Nations General Assembly next month France is now the first major Western country to shift its diplomatic stance on a Palestinian state, after Spain, Ireland and Norway officially recognised one last year WHY IS THIS SIGNIFICANT? The decision to recognise Palestinian statehood is mostly symbolic but it makes Israel appear more isolated on the international stage over the war in Gaza WHY DID MACRON DO THIS? Macron decided to do it ahead of a UN conference co-hosted by France and Saudi Arabia on the matter next week to try to sway other countries considering that step, or those that are wavering WHAT IMPACT COULD IT HAVE ON FRENCH TIES WITH ISRAEL Ahead of Macron's announcement, Israeli officials had spent months lobbying to prevent what some had called "a nuclear bomb" for bilateral relations Sources familiar with the matter say Israel's warnings to France had ranged from scaling back intelligence-sharing to complicating Paris' regional initiatives - even hinting at possible annexation of parts of the West Bank WHO COULD BE NEXT? The decision by France, which is home to Europe's largest Jewish and Muslim communities alike, could fuel a movement so far dominated by smaller nations generally more critical of Israel The decision will put pressure on major countries like Britain, Germany, Australia, Canada and Japan to follow suit In the immediate term, Malta and Belgium could be the next countries within the European Union to do so WHO ELSE HAS RECOGNISED PALESTINIAN STATEHOOD? Last year, Ireland, Norway and Spain recognised a Palestinian state with its borders to be demarcated as they were prior to the 1967 Middle East war, when Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem About 144 of the 193 member states of the United Nations recognise Palestine as a state, including most of the global south as well as Russia, China and India Only a handful of the 27 European Union members do so, mostly former Communist countries as well as Sweden and Cyprus The UN General Assembly approved the de facto recognition of the sovereign state of Palestine in November 2012 by upgrading its observer status at the world body to "non-member state" from "entity" HOW DID THE UNITED STATES, ISRAEL, AND PALESTINIANS REACT? Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the decision by France, one of Israel's closest allies and a G7 member, saying such a move "rewards terror and risks creating another Iranian proxy" US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the United States "strongly rejects (Macron's) plan to recognise a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly" "This reckless decision only serves Hamas propaganda and sets back peace," Rubio posted on X The Palestinian Authority's Vice President Hussein Al Sheikh said Macron's decision reflected "France's commitment to international law and its support for the Palestinian people's rights to self-determination and the establishment of our independent state"


Perth Now
an hour ago
- Perth Now
Why France is recognising Palestinian statehood
French President Emmanuel Macron has announced he will recognise Palestinian statehood, drawing angry rebukes from Israel and the United States and opening the door for other major nations to perhaps follow suit. WHAT DID MACRON SAY? Macron published a letter sent to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas confirming France's intention to press ahead with recognition and work to convince other partners to do the same He said he would make a formal announcement at the United Nations General Assembly next month France is now the first major Western country to shift its diplomatic stance on a Palestinian state, after Spain, Ireland and Norway officially recognised one last year WHY IS THIS SIGNIFICANT? The decision to recognise Palestinian statehood is mostly symbolic but it makes Israel appear more isolated on the international stage over the war in Gaza WHY DID MACRON DO THIS? Macron decided to do it ahead of a UN conference co-hosted by France and Saudi Arabia on the matter next week to try to sway other countries considering that step, or those that are wavering WHAT IMPACT COULD IT HAVE ON FRENCH TIES WITH ISRAEL Ahead of Macron's announcement, Israeli officials had spent months lobbying to prevent what some had called "a nuclear bomb" for bilateral relations Sources familiar with the matter say Israel's warnings to France had ranged from scaling back intelligence-sharing to complicating Paris' regional initiatives - even hinting at possible annexation of parts of the West Bank WHO COULD BE NEXT? The decision by France, which is home to Europe's largest Jewish and Muslim communities alike, could fuel a movement so far dominated by smaller nations generally more critical of Israel The decision will put pressure on major countries like Britain, Germany, Australia, Canada and Japan to follow suit In the immediate term, Malta and Belgium could be the next countries within the European Union to do so WHO ELSE HAS RECOGNISED PALESTINIAN STATEHOOD? Last year, Ireland, Norway and Spain recognised a Palestinian state with its borders to be demarcated as they were prior to the 1967 Middle East war, when Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem About 144 of the 193 member states of the United Nations recognise Palestine as a state, including most of the global south as well as Russia, China and India Only a handful of the 27 European Union members do so, mostly former Communist countries as well as Sweden and Cyprus The UN General Assembly approved the de facto recognition of the sovereign state of Palestine in November 2012 by upgrading its observer status at the world body to "non-member state" from "entity" HOW DID THE UNITED STATES, ISRAEL, AND PALESTINIANS REACT? Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the decision by France, one of Israel's closest allies and a G7 member, saying such a move "rewards terror and risks creating another Iranian proxy" US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the United States "strongly rejects (Macron's) plan to recognise a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly" "This reckless decision only serves Hamas propaganda and sets back peace," Rubio posted on X The Palestinian Authority's Vice President Hussein Al Sheikh said Macron's decision reflected "France's commitment to international law and its support for the Palestinian people's rights to self-determination and the establishment of our independent state"

The Age
an hour ago
- The Age
Children in Gaza starve while we watch in silence
Crisis of Hamas' making Rodger Shanahan (' Overkill in Gaza: Penny Wong was right to call out Israel ', 25/7) overlooks the important fact that Israel agreed to the ceasefire deal proposed by the mediators, but Hamas refused. Even Qatar now says it's Hamas holding up a deal. A different Israeli offer to immediately stop the war and allow safe passage to a third country for Hamas leaders in exchange for Hamas releasing the hostages and surrendering weapons has long been on the table. Hamas refuses because it is determined to retain control in Gaza, rebuild, and attack Israel again. It uses the humanitarian crisis to get pressure on Israel. In what other conflict would a government whose people are starving because of a war it started not be the one under pressure to end it? Danny Samuels, Malvern THE FORUM Childcare discrimination There is another unfolding tragedy in childcare and early learning before our eyes – the widespread and discriminatory reaction towards men working, or wanting to work in these areas. What sort of message does this send to society at large and our children in particular? That men aren't suitable to work with children? Care for them? Nurture them? This is appalling. The systemic changes that are clearly needed in the childcare system to ensure our children's safety must not end in banning men from looking after them. The implicit message in all of this is that men cannot care for kids. How must this make all the wonderful fathers, brothers, uncles, grandpas feel? That they aren't worthy? That every male is a potential child abuser? This is a dangerous path to go down. Panicked policy must not be allowed to take the place of sensible solutions. Otherwise, we face a dangerous fracturing in our community that will have long-lasting, insidious and detrimental effects in how we see each other's basic humanity. Jennie Irving, Camberwell Culture of fear I am a 68-year-old man and was a registered midwife in Victoria for three decades. It was wonderful back then, before gender bigotry took over. Now, many parents are understandably terrified because one man who worked in childcare is accused of sex crimes against small children. Will this terrified society now reduce the size of the childcare workforce by making it harder for men to work in it? Lower carer-to-child ratios will make childcare less safe nearly everywhere. The biggest cause of danger to Aussie kids now is the obscenely ignorant selfishness of the modern culture of fear. Geoff Fox, Maribyrnong Think Tasmanian In Letters, ' Be careful of changing ' (24/7), your correspondent mentioned the secret ballot, compulsory voting and our independent AEC as strengths of our system. However, single-member constituencies and safe seats have enabled our democracy to be undermined. In the absence of a well-organised local revolution as happened in the teal seats in 2022, a safe or a nearly safe seat in the House of Representatives is a highly sought after gift from political party headquarters with little consideration of the local voters. Federal elections should adopt the Hare-Clarke multi-seat constituency model used in Tasmania. Voters could then elect parliamentarians that proportionately represent the different views within the constituency and, in consequence, parliamentarians would be more alert and responsive to their electorate. We may be able to watch the process operating in real time as the election results in Tasmania are declared and the new parliament deals with the very controversial plans for the stadium in Hobart. Gerry O'Reilly, Camberwell Thai diversion The Thai government has started a 'Diversionary War' with Cambodia to rally domestic support for a failing political party (″ Travel warning for Thailand and Cambodia after gunfire and rockets leave 14 dead ″, 24/7). What a sad and predictable state of affairs for a country that has so much potential, and for many Australians, holds a special place in their hearts. The economy is on the verge of collapse, but the Thai people will once again be manipulated by a self-serving leadership for domestic political gain. Decades of unaccountable military and elite-led governance, have created vast sums of dynastic wealth and power off the backs of the little people, and has turned Thailand into a modern-day feudal society. The Thai people deserve better than this. Dave Butler, South Yarra Irresponsible on climate The historic decision of the International Court of Justice (' Australia faces 'inescapable' legal risk after historic climate ruling ', 24/7) that countries adversely affected by climate change can legally sue climatically irresponsible neighbouring countries, not only comes as a future warning to Australia, but calls for an urgent re-examination of a recent appalling decision. Federal Labor's irresponsible decision to extend the life of the NW Shelf gas project by 40 years was largely driven by Labor's WA branch behaving like a subsidiary of the mining and gas industry. Anthony Albanese acknowledges the role of global heating in our current climate chaos but heads a government that spends $14billion/annum on fossil fuel subsidies and has opened numerous new coal and gas fields. Labor has now saddled Australia with a carbon 'bomb', to the detriment of future generations. Torres Strait and Pacific islanders are entitled to regard this Labor government as climatically irresponsible and withdraw support for Australia's bid to host COP 31. Ian Bayly, Upwey After hours applause When my first daughter became interested in netball, I used to take her down to the local primary school at weekends to throw a ball around. Sadly, this wasn't possible with my youngest because the school had begun locking up tight after-hours to keep out vandals. I applaud the Victorian government's pilot program to open 41 government schools to the community, and hope more kids can have the same opportunity to play and practise sport at a safe, local and free location in their own time. Max Barry, Kensington Is Don not so good? What must the world think of Australia? Recently, we paid a second instalment of hundreds of millions of dollars on nuclear submarines that may never surface, and now we have agreed to import US beef when we already produce a surplus of a superior product. So must we now wait for the marketing of 'Trump Steak' and 'Beef Washington' with possibly the plagiarism of the old slogan 'Is Don. Is Good'? Kevan Porter, Alphington Wasted time Time is often wasted as AFL players watch ″the shot clock″ or amble backwards just before taking a kick. There must be several minutes in each match as players watch the clock tick down, or go back to their preferred range, before actually lining up and moving into their kick. Robert Yates, Rosanna AND ANOTHER THING Gaza The front page of The Age (25/7) is an image that will be burnt into memories for a generation. What the Israeli government hopes to achieve by this grotesque overreach is beyond comprehension. What Hamas hopes to achieve by continuing to hold hostages is also anyone's guess. Julian Guy, Mount Eliza It was hard eating breakfast reading the front page of The Age and being confronted with the skin and bone of a Gazan child starving. David West, Essendon Re The Age photo: The Pieta, 2025. Has mankind learned nothing from history? Oriana Collins, Hawthorn Wilcox's cartoon (25/7) implies that Israel is solely responsible for the terrible suffering of civilians in Gaza. I beg to differ. Kati Tribe, Moonee Ponds 'Gaza's children are starving' and congratulations to The Age for highlighting this shocking tragedy. Robin Rothfield, Brighton East Beef So the Nationals want to have a scientific review on the importation of beef from the US. Is this the same party some of whose members dispute accepted research on climate change? Rod Watson, East Brighton Hilarious that Sussan Ley goads Albanese on the opening day of parliament that he hasn't yet had a meeting with the Donald. Most Australians would agree he should stay as far away as possible. Catherine Ross, Sandringham Considering current LNP tantrums, it is good to have the grown-ups in charge. Hans Paas, Castlemaine