By using this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy and our Terms of Use. Close
hellobion2 said:

Hello Guys I was wondering if you think that the two-state solution is viable still?

Less and less each day, but it's the only way. A one state solution seems even less viable, both sides need time to recognize each other as human beings again... All other alternatives are impossible. Can't move 6 million Palestinians out of there, can't move 7.2 million Jews out of there.

It's not going to be easy to define that 2 state solution with 500,000 to 700,000 illegal settlers squatting in East Jerusalem and the West Bank. Israel will have to make some huge concessions to make a 2 state solution possible. Maybe some of the Westbank can become part of Israel in trade of more continuous land for the Palestinian state in other parts of Israel that are not inhabited. However some settlements will have to be given up, should never have been there in the first place. They're right in the middle of the Westbank, isolated pockets.


More than 800 officials from across Europe and the US sign scathing criticism of Gaza policy

More than 800 officials from the United States and Europe have signed a scathing criticism of Western policy toward Israel and Gaza, accusing their governments of possible complicity in war crimes.

In a statement obtained by CNN, the officials say there is a “plausible risk that our governments’ policies are contributing to grave violations of international humanitarian law, war crimes and even ethnic cleansing or genocide.” They accuse their governments of failing to hold Israel to the same standards they apply to other countries and weakening their own “moral standing” in the world.

Among them are around 80 United States officials and diplomats, a source told CNN. In an unprecedented display of coordinated dissent since Israel’s war against Hamas began nearly four months ago, the signatories call on their governments to “use all leverage” to secure a ceasefire and to stop saying that there is a “a strategic and defensible rationale behind the Israeli operation.”

https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/02/middleeast/western-officials-criticism-gaza-policy-israel-intl

Almost all children in Gaza require mental health and psychological support, UNICEF says

At least 17,000 children in Gaza are unaccompanied or separated from their parents, according to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) — about 1% of the total of 1.7 million people who have been displaced in Gaza. UNICEF State of Palestine Chief of Communication Jonathan Crickx said in Geneva on Friday that the number is only an estimate, as information is hard to gather in Gaza due to deteriorating security and humanitarian conditions.  

Children are suffering from mental health issues, displaying high levels of persistent anxiety, emotional outbursts or panic when they hear bombings, loss of appetite, and inability to sleep, Crickx said after returning from Gaza, where he spoke with some of these children. UNICEF estimates that almost all children in Gaza — more than one million — now require mental health and psychological support.   

He described one girl he met, 11-year-old Razan, who lost almost all her family members, including her parents, brother, and two sisters, when her uncle’s home where they were sheltering was bombed. Raza’s leg was injured, had to be amputated, and is now infected, Crickx said. “Each time she recalls the events, she falls in tears and gets exhausted. Razan's situation is also particularly distressing since her mobility is severely limited and specialized support and rehabilitation services are not available,” he said. 

UNICEF said it fears the situation for children in northern and central Gaza is much worse.  “Not a single child, whatever the religion, the nationality, the language, the race, no child should ever be exposed to the level of violence seen on the 7th of October, or to the level of violence that we have witnessed since then," Crickx said.

Mother of missing 6-year-old trapped in car in Gaza waits outside hospital hoping she will arrive

The mother of a 6-year-old girl, missing since Monday after becoming trapped when the car she was in came under fire in central Gaza, has been standing outside a hospital hoping her daughter will arrive "at any minute." 

The little girl, Hind Rajab, is thought to be the only survivor out of the seven passengers traveling in the car, which was part of a convoy that came under fire. More than 90 hours have now elapsed since a rescue crew was sent to her aid. As of Friday morning, the fate of young Hind and the Palestine Red Crescent Society crew was still unknown. 

When asked by CNN about the situation, the Israel Defense Forces said it was "unfamiliar with the incident described." 

UN says thousands are fleeing from Khan Younis to Rafah, where Israel says it will focus next

The "escalation of hostilities" in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis is driving thousands of civilians to Rafah — a town with more than 1.4 million Gazans "already crammed" in, according to the United Nations.

"In recent days, thousands of Palestinians have continued to flee to the south, which is already hosting over half the Gaza’s population of some 2.3 million people. Most are living in makeshift structures, tents or out in the open. Rafah is a pressure cooker of despair, and we fear for what comes next," said Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

While civilians flee to Rafah looking for safety, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has also said the Israeli military will target the area after achieving its mission in Khan Younis. The UN said Thursday that more than 1.4 million Gazans are "already crammed" into the Rafah governorate.