Condemnation after Knesset vote backs Israeli sovereignty over West Bank
Greta Thunberg takes part in pro-Palestinian protest in Albania
IRC calls for 'unfettered humanitarian access into Gaza' as children die from starvation
At least 59,219 Palestinians killed and 143,045 wounded since Gaza war began
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The National
an hour ago
- The National
Dropping aid into Gaza and the fate of a ceasefire
Israel has begun allowing aid to be dropped into Gaza by parachute. In Israel, far-right figures are objecting to permitting aid into Gaza. Syria, France and the US have agreed to meet on Kurdish integration. On today's episode of Trending Middle East: UAE and Jordan planes drop food and humanitarian aid into Gaza Israel claims aid trickling in after widespread condemnation of blockade Paris to host Syria talks on integrating Kurds This episode features Hamza Hendawi, Cairo correspondent, and Thomas Helm, Jerusalem correspondent. Editor's note: We want to hear from you! Help us improve our podcasts by taking our 2-minute listener survey. Click here.
The National
an hour ago
- The National
UN conference will test global resolve for Palestinian statehood
Saudi Arabia and France are set to spearhead a high-stakes conference at the UN this week, launching a bold push to forge a path towards an independent Palestinian state − a move that has already ignited a fierce backlash from Israel and the Trump administration. This ambitious initiative aims to resurrect long-stalled peace efforts, setting the stage for a diplomatic showdown over the region's future. The two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is both more threatened and more necessary than at any time since the Oslo Accords, a French diplomatic source said ahead of the conference. The October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel deepened Israeli scepticism towards Palestinian statehood, while the subsequent war in Gaza has devastated the enclave and weakened prospects for stability, the source told reporters in New York. Despite these challenges, the French official argued that the two-state solution remains the only viable path forward. It is 'even more necessary because there is no alternative', the source said. 'We cannot just discuss the situation in Gaza and the day after … we need to see beyond.' French President Emmanuel Macron last week announced that France would recognise Palestine as a state. 'The urgent thing today is that the war in Gaza stops, and the civilian population is saved,' he said. France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told CBS News on Sunday that Paris's diplomatic efforts are 'very complementary' to Washington's. 'In fact, we will welcome any further efforts led by the US to implement the Abraham Accord logics. And what we're doing now with this very significant conference that will take place in New York will pave the way for such accords,' he said. 'But in the meantime, until the US administration provides, through the Abraham Accord logics, a political horizon for this crisis, we need to act in order to facilitate the or create an off ramp for the catastrophe ongoing in Gaza' The French diplomatic source indicated that no new normalisation agreements are expected to be announced during the meeting. This week's ministerial-level conference, which was postponed in June amid the 12-day air war between Israel and Iran, will focus on Gaza's reconstruction, its governance and security, disarmament of the Palestinian militant group Hamas and normalising relations between Israel and Arab states that have not yet done so. Volker Türk, the United Nations high commissioner for human rights, said the international community "will judge this conference on what it delivers." "We stand ready to support the Palestinians in state-building, with human rights and rule of law at its centre. When that time comes, programmes to support victims and survivors will be an important avenue for opening a pathway to accountability and redress," he said. China expressed its support for the UN conference on Friday, with Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun saying 'the two-state solution remains the only viable path to resolve the Palestinian issue'. Max Rodenbeck, Israel-Palestine project director at the International Crisis Group think tank, said that while reviving international focus on the two-state solution is 'laudable', practical steps are needed. 'Rhetorical support needs to be matched by practical steps, as the practical possibility for creating a Palestinian state on the ground has been ebbing for years, and under the current Israeli government faces stubborn hostility,' Mr Rodenbeck said. France in September will become the third permanent member of the UN Security Council to recognise Palestine, along with Russia and China. Currently, 147 out of 193 UN member states officially recognise the state of Palestine. Mr Rodenbeck noted that Mr Macron's pledge to recognise a Palestinian state, even if symbolic for now, offers Palestinians 'a horizon for hope'. Pressure is intensifying on Israel to end its war in Gaza. Israel's strikes and ground offensive have killed nearly 60,000 Palestinians, displaced most of the population and laid waste to most of the enclave. This followed the Hamas-led attacks on Israeli communities on October 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people and abducting 240. The conference takes place as ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas appear to have collapsed, and as more than 100 aid agencies warned of mass starvation in Gaza. US President Donald Trump suggested on Friday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should intensify military action against Hamas to eliminate the group. 'Hamas didn't really want to make a deal, I think they want to die,' Mr Trump told journalists at the White House before a trip to Scotland, adding that it's time to 'finish the job' and 'get rid' of Hamas. Mr Rodenbeck said: 'It is tragic that ceasefire talks have broken down, but the more immediate tragedy – and a more solvable one – is the looming famine about to engulf Gaza.' 'Israel's use of food as a weapon is not only disgraceful, it has clearly proved ineffective as a negotiating tactic,' he said. The event will test international resolve to push for Palestinian statehood despite Israeli and US resistance, with Riyadh and Paris framing it as a critical step towards long-term stability.
The National
an hour ago
- The National
Israel must let more food in to Gaza and end the starvation
Since the Gaza ceasefire talks collapsed four months ago, Israel has had a total blockade in place that has prevented food and aid supplies from entering the Palestinian enclave. As a result, the 2.2 million Palestinians confined there have had inflicted on them constant hunger, malnutrition and, as the situation has worsened, a mounting death toll from an entirely avoidable, man-made famine. This is quite apart from the Palestinians still dying and being injured by Israeli aerial attacks and gunfire – Palestinian authorities say more than 59,821 people have been killed since the Gaza war began – and several dozen lives routinely being taken at aid distribution sites, where the clamouring and desperation for food is tragically clear. In response to the crisis and after several countries appear to have convinced Israel to allow alternative methods of aid distribution, the UAE on Saturday said it is resuming aid air drops to Gaza. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs noted: "We will ensure essential aid reaches those most in need, whether through land, air or sea. Air drops are resuming once more, immediately. Our commitment to alleviating suffering and providing support is resolute and unwavering." Up until last year, the UAE dropped thousands of tonnes of humanitarian aid, food and relief supplies into Gaza. Its other relief operations have also continued. Just last month, the UAE sent a ship with 2100 tonnes of aid to Gaza. Given the context of starvation and the urgent need for food in Gaza, aid air drops at this time are necessary For the first time since the war began, Israel has also air dropped packages of supplies for Palestinians. And it has permitted Jordan (along with the UAE) to do so as well. Countries such as the UK are also in the process of facilitating the parachuting of aid. Given the context of starvation and the urgent need for food in Gaza, aid air drops at this time are necessary. But they are also inadequate and cannot be viewed as a long-term solution. The much more effective way to deliver aid, much of which is lying in warehouses ready to be delivered, is by road, access to which has been systematically denied by the Israeli government. The images of emaciated babies and skeletal helpless frames of their guardians speak for themselves. The death toll so far from malnutrition and starvation in Gaza over the past 20 months of war has risen to 133, including the deaths of 87 children. An Israeli concern frequently repeated is that the aid, were it to be allowed thorough the road checkpoints – as aid trucks from Egypt were let in from Rafah on Sunday –would likely be intercepted by Hamas, and looted. However, no proof has been presented of this. Some gangs have reportedly attacked convoys and without the UN, aid distribution is greatly disrupted. But even with these challenges, the logic doesn't stand up to scrutiny when on the other hand is the strategic starvation of Palestinians. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres last week said: 'The last lifelines keeping people alive are collapsing." Teams of the UN's World Food Program delivered 350 truckloads of food aid into Gaza last week. The millions of impoverished people in the enclave need much more than what they are set to receive in the coming days. WFP says more than 62,000 tons of food assistance is needed monthly to cover the entire Palestinian population. And they need a constant supply through aid corridors that are allowed to stay open and not just when international stakeholders decide to turn up the heat on Israel. The Gaza ceasefire appears to have stalled. But just because the killings continue doesn't mean that the starvation campaign cannot be brought to an immediate and permanent end.
