94 killed in Israeli strikes in Gaza, health authorities say – as UN expert calls situation ‘apocalyptic'
Reuters news agency said five people were killed outside sites associated with the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), an American organisation operating with support from the US and Israeli governments.
A further 40 were killed waiting for aid in other locations across the Gaza Strip, while 15 more people were killed in strikes that hit tents in the Muwasi zone in southern , where many displaced Palestinians are sheltering.
A separate strike on a school sheltering displaced people in Gaza City also killed 15 people.
Israel's military has not commented on the strikes.
The GHF has been primarily responsible for aid distribution in Gaza since Israel lifted its 11-week blockade on the region last month.
It has four distribution centres, which are guarded by private security contractors and located near Israeli military positions.
Palestinian officials and witnesses have accused Israeli forces of opening fire at crowds of people near the sites.
this week showed deaths in Gaza rise significantly when the GHF distributes aid.
Situation in Gaza is 'apocalyptic', says UN expert
A United Nations expert on Thursday called for countries to cut off trade with and impose an arms embargo.
In a speech to the UN Human Rights Council, the organisation's special rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories said the situation there is "apocalyptic".
Francesca Albanese told the council in Geneva: "Israel is responsible for one of the cruellest genocides in modern history."
Israel has rejected allegations of genocide in Gaza, citing its right to defend itself after Hamas's attack on 7 October 2023.
Ms Albanese, one of dozens of independent UN-mandated experts, was presenting her latest report, which names over 60 companies that she says are involved in supporting Israeli settlements and military actions in Gaza.
"What I expose is not a list, it is a system, and that is to be addressed," she said. "We must reverse the tide."
Read more:
Ms Albanese called for states to suspend all trade agreements with Israel, impose full arms embargoes, and ensure companies face legal consequences for their involvement in violations of international law.
Israel's diplomatic mission in Geneva has said Ms Albanese's latest report is "legally groundless, defamatory and a flagrant abuse of her office".
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hill
27 minutes ago
- The Hill
Trump will kick off a yearlong celebration of America's 250th anniversary with event in Iowa
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — President Donald Trump campaigned on a promise to deliver a 'spectacular' yearlong birthday party to mark 250 years of American independence. On Thursday, he will be in the U.S. heartland to kick off the patriotic festivities — and to celebrate the final passage of his sweeping tax cuts and spending package. Trump is expected to tout the major piece of his agenda when he takes the stage Thursday at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines, according to the White House. This comes just hours after the House pushed it through in a tight roll call of 218-214. Organizers see the coming year of festivities as a way to help unite a polarized nation and bridge partisanship. But it's a monumental task given the country's divides and the staunch Democratic opposition to the 800-plus page package full of the GOP's main policy priorities. More U.S. adults also disapprove than approve of how the Republican president is doing his job. The event at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines drew a few thousand spectators waiting for the president for hours in the 90-plus degree Fahrenheit (32 degree Celsius) heat. Iowa was a 'logical choice' for the kickoff, said U.S. Ambassador Monica Crowley, Trump's liaison to the organizing group, America250. Crowley said that's because of its central location and Trump's affinity for the state, which supported him in each of the last three general elections. She also said Iowa's middle-of-the-country geography is symbolic of the desire to use the coming celebrations to help bring people together. 'We've had so much division and so much polarization over the last many decades, but certainly over the last few years, that to be able to bring the country together to celebrate America's 250th birthday through patriotism, shared values and a renewed sense of civic pride, to be able to do that in the center of the country, is incredibly important,' she said. A recent Gallup poll showed the widest partisan split in patriotism in over two decades, with only about a third of Democrats saying they are proud to be American, compared with about 9 in 10 Republicans. About 4 in 10 U.S. adults approve of Trump's performance as president, according to a June AP-NORC poll, while about 6 in 10 disapprove. That poll also showed a majority of Americans said the June military parade that Trump green-lit in Washington for the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army — an event that fell on his 79th birthday — was 'not a good use' of government money. Crowley spoke to the political and ideological schisms that left the country 'torn apart' ahead of its last big birthday celebration, noting that 1976 closely followed the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal that led Richard Nixon to resign from the presidency. 'That moment was critical to uniting the country and moving forward, and I am very optimistic and hopeful that the yearlong celebration that we're about to launch will do the same thing in this present moment,' she said in an interview. America's 250th birthday 'is something that I think that all Americans can come together to celebrate and honor our history as well as our present and our future,' Crowley said. The Trump administration's own cost-cutting moves this year threaten to complicate the celebrations. Reduced funding led the National Endowment for the Humanities to send letters to state humanities councils across the country saying their federal grants had been terminated. Many of those councils had been working on programming to commemorate the 250th anniversary and had already dedicated some of their federal grants for events at libraries, schools and museums. Gabrielle Lyon, executive director of Illinois Humanities and chair of the Illinois America 250 Commission, said the cuts already have curtailed some of the planned programs, including community readings of the Declaration of Independence. 'It is very hard to understand how we can protect and preserve people's ability locally to make this mean something for them, and to celebrate what they want to celebrate, if you're not funding the humanities councils,' Lyon said. On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence, officially marking the 13 colonies' split from Great Britain. 'We're gonna have a big, big celebration, as you know, 250 years,' Trump said about the birthday during his Memorial Day address to a solemn audience at Arlington National Cemetery. 'In some ways, I'm glad I missed that second term where it was because I wouldn't be your president for that.' Video of then-candidate Trump proposing a 'Great American State Fair' in Iowa in May 2023 began to recirculate after his reelection last November, but the culminating fair instead will be held next year on the National Mall in Washington, according to a White House official who was not authorized to share details publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. The lineup Thursday night will include Lee Greenwood, according to social media posts advertising the event, whose song, 'God Bless the USA,' is a regular feature at Trump rallies and official events. Also attending will be Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins. ___ AP Polling Editor Amelia Thomson DeVeaux in Washington contributed to this report. AP writers Gary Fields and Chris Megerian also contributed.
Yahoo
32 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Iranian Influx Under Biden: Over 700 Illegal Crossers Released Into U.S., Threatening National Safety
(The Center Square) – More than 700 Iranian nationals who illegally entered the U.S. were released into the country by the Biden administration, according to data The Center Square obtained Sunday from a Border Patrol agent. According to the data, from fiscal years 2021 through 2024, Border Patrol agents apprehended 1,504 Iranian nationals who illegally entered the U.S. between ports of entry nationwide. Every year, the numbers increased exponentially. They include 48 Iranian illegal border crossers apprehended in fiscal 2021; 197 apprehended in 2022; 462 apprehended in 2023; and 797 apprehended in 2024. Among those apprehended, 729 Iranians were released into the U.S. under the Biden administration. Throughout the administration, the number of Iranians that were released into the U.S. also increased every year. In 2021, 12 Iranian illegal border crossers were released into the U.S.; in 2022, 40 were released into the U.S.; in 2023, 229 were released into the U.S.; in 2024, 448 were released into the U.S., according to data exclusively obtained by The Center Square. The agent provided the information on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal. The Center Square obtained the data after President Donald Trump authorized the use of American-built B2 bombers to strike three nuclear facilities in Iran late Saturday. The data excludes Iranians apprehended at ports of entry and those who illegally entered the U.S. as gotaways. Gotways is the official term used to describe foreign nationals who illegally enter between ports of entry to intentionally evade capture. More than two million gotaways were reported under the Biden administration, The Center Square exclusively reported. Throughout the Biden administration, The Center Square received information from Border Patrol agents that wasn't made public by U.S. Customs and Border Protection related to apprehensions and gotaways. Under the Trump administration, data on how many Iranian nationals were encountered or apprehended so far this year has also not been made public, according to official . CBP officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Sunday about the number of Iranians apprehended or encountered under the Trump administration. Nor did it respond to questions about how many Iranian nationals were identified as 'special interest aliens' or as known or suspected terrorists (KSTs). SIA information hasn't been published by any administration, including under the first Trump administration. A bill filed in Congress last year would require federal reporting of the data, The Center Square . To date, no official in the Biden or Trump administration can confirm how many Iranians have illegally entered the U.S. as gotaways. One Iranian gotaway with ties to terrorism was apprehended in Buffalo, New York, by U.S. federal agents, The Center Square . U.S. officials are under heightened alert in light of numerous Iranians already arrested or indicted for material support for terrorism in just the last few months, The Center Square . Under the Biden administration, the greatest number of KSTs were apprehended in U.S. history: 1,903, The Center Square . The majority, 64%, totaling 1,216, were apprehended at the northern border coming from Canada between fiscal years 2021-2024, according to CBP data. A record 687 KSTs were reported at the southwest border over the same time period. Last September, former President Joe Biden extended a 2001-era national emergency due to increased terrorist threats, including Islamic terrorist threats, The Center Square . This was after of illegal border crossers with ties to the Islamic terrorist group ISIS were released into the country by the Biden administration or evaded capture with ties to an alleged ISIS smuggling ring. Border czar Tom Homan has long warned that Biden administration policies created the greatest national security threat since 9/11, The Center Square . U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, an avid supporter of Trump's targeted attack of Iran, The Center Square that Americans 'are at a greater risk for a major terrorist attack than we have been at any point since Sept. 11, 2001' because of Biden administration policies. Cruz said for years that 'Iran has declared a jihad demanding that terrorists murder Americans. Hamas has declared a jihad demanding that terrorists murder Americans. Hezbollah has declared a jihad demanding that terrorists murder Americans. 'Palestinian Islamic Jihad,' true to their name, has declared a jihad demanding that terrorists murder Americans.' The only response, he argues, was for President Trump to take action to protect Americans, including securing US borders and targeting terrorist organizations that have already killed U.S. servicemembers and are committed to killing Americans.
Yahoo
33 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Nobel laureate warns Iran is increasingly repressing its own citizens
One of Iran's most prominent human rights advocates is warning that the Iranian government is using the aftermath of its 12-day war with Israel to escalate repression against its own citizens -- particularly political and civil activists. Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi, in a video message to ABC News, warned that a surge in executions and widespread arrests since the war began shows that the regime is using the moment to deflect from decades of alleged repression and failed policy, with the aim to "spread fear and terror." "We are now witnessing the intensification of the war between the Islamic Republic and the people of Iran -- a war that's been going on for 46 years," Mohammadi said. MORE: Iran crackdown deepens with speedy executions and arrests While Iranian authorities have publicly celebrated what they call a "victory" over Israel, Mohammadi rejects that claim. "I simply don't believe this," she said. "War weakens the very tools needed to achieve human rights and democracy -- like civil society. I believe that with the Islamic Republic still in power after this war, our work and our fight have now become even more difficult." She warned that the regime, "now weakened," has tightened its grip on civil liberties, turning on alleged traitors from within. Iranian authorities, while acknowledging damage to parts of their nuclear facilities and infrastructure, insist they remain strong and unified. State-affiliated media have framed the recent wave of arrests and executions as necessary measures to protect national security, alleging infiltration and espionage linked to Israel's Mossad intelligence agency. Mohammadi spoke from her home in Tehran, where she is defying a government order to return to Iran's notorious Evin Prison following urgent, life-saving surgery. Mohammadi, who is serving a 13-year, 9-month sentence, was granted a medical furlough from the prison, where many of the country's dissidents and political prisoners are held. She and other activists have expressed particular concern over the condition and fate of Evin's prisoners following Israel's June 23 missile strike on the facility. According to Iran's judiciary spokesperson, at least 71 people were killed in the strike, which the United Nations Human Rights Office condemned as a "gross violation" of international law. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israel hit "regime targets and agencies of government repression" across Tehran, including Evin. While Mohammadi also condemned the strike, she warned that what has followed may pose an even greater human rights threat. Mohammadi, who was on furlough at the time of the attack, told ABC News she has spoken extensively with prisoners and their families. "After the attack, the situation inside Evin became extremely securitized," said Mohammadi, who all told has been handed more than 36 years of prison time on multiple charges including committing 'propaganda activity against the state' and 'collusion against state security" -- vaguely defined national security offenses commonly used by authorities to criminalize peaceful dissent. "Prisoner transfers are now happening under heavily militarized conditions." Mohammadi said, "with full sniper coverage [and prisoners] shackled with both handcuffs and leg irons." Following days of uncertainty, Iran's Prisons Organization announced that detainees had been transferred to other prisons across Tehran Province. State media reported that many were moved to facilities including Qarchak Prison and Greater Tehran Prison. "The situation inside both prisons is extremely worrying," Mohammadi said, describing the transferred inmates as "war-affected detainees" now subjected to what she called "severe repression." A source close to the families of several political prisoners, who asked that their name not be used due to fear of reprisals, told ABC News that conditions in Qarchak Prison are "unbearable" and "akin to torture," citing overcrowding, a lack of food and drinking water, poor sanitation, and insufficient access to basic necessities. Three political prisoners -- Golrokh Iraee, Reyhaneh Ansari and Varisheh Moradi -- issued a joint statement from Qarchak Prison, saying, "We do not consider today's suffering of our own to be greater than the suffering imposed on the people of Iran." Mohammadi told ABC News that she is calling for renewed international scrutiny of Iran's treatment of its own citizens. MORE: 71 killed in Israeli attack on Iran prison, official says "I believe our situation has become even more dangerous for the people than it was before the war, and we must expand our human rights activities," she said. "I hope international human rights organizations will refocus their special and particular attention on the repressions now being carried out in Iran after the war -- including the issue of arrests, prisons, torture, forced confessions, and then the executions." Mohammadi also warned that based on "clear evidence and reports," she expects that the government's crackdown on civil society, particularly young people and activists, is likely to "become even more severe" in the coming days. Despite the regime's efforts to silence dissent, Mohammadi said she remains committed to her activism, even as pressure mounts on her, her family, and friends. A member of her support team told ABC News that she has received repeated phone calls demanding her return to prison, and that intelligence agents have summoned, interrogated, and harassed her friends and family in what appears to be an effort to isolate her. Her team also says Iranian financial authorities issued an official order to seize Mohammadi's Nobel Peace Prize award money -- 17 billion toman or approximately USD $400,000 -- echoing a similar tactic used against fellow Nobel laureate Shirin Ebadi in 2009. "I want to see an end to the Islamic Republic -- a repressive, theocratic, and authoritarian system that is misogynistic, unreformable, and fundamentally dysfunctional," Mohammadi's said. "But I am against war -- because it drains the strength and capacity of the Iranian people, civil society, and pro-democracy activists." Still, she remains hopeful. "For decades, we've been fighting for freedom, democracy, and equality -- enduring repression, imprisonment, executions, and torture. But we've never backed down," she said. "Until the day democracy is achieved -- I will not stop."
