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US State Department Arabic spokesperson resigns in opposition to Gaza policy
The Arabic language spokesperson of the US State Department has resigned, citing her opposition to Washington’s policy related to Israel’s war on Gaza.
Hala Rharrit was also the Dubai Regional Media Hub’s deputy director and joined the State Department almost two decades ago as a political and human rights officer, the department’s website showed.
She wrote on LinkedIn, “I resigned April 2024 after 18 years of distinguished service in opposition to the United States’ Gaza policy.”
Nearly a month earlier, Annelle Sheline of the State Department’s human rights bureau announced her resignation, and State Department official Josh Paul resigned in October.
A senior official in the US Education Department, Tariq Habash, who is Palestinian-American, had stepped down in January.
Why am I not surprised... The Freedom flotilla was announced 2 weeks ago, still hasn't left. I'm not expecting much from the US' aid pier either.
5,000 tons sounds like a lot, however it's about 250 aid trucks. There are between 3,000 and 7,000 aid trucks waiting to enter Gaza through the Rafah crossing.
Israel places ‘roadblock’ to delay ‘Gaza Freedom Flotilla’: Aid coalition
The Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), a movement composed of campaigns and initiatives working to end the Israeli blockade of Gaza, says its aid ship bound for the enclave has been delayed from leaving Turkey.
The coalition said in a statement that “All the required paperwork has been submitted to the port authority, and the cargo has been loaded and prepared for the trip to Gaza”.
“However, today we received word of an administrative roadblock initiated by Israel in an attempt to prevent our departure”.
“Israel is pressuring the Republic of Guinea Bissau to withdraw its flag from our lead ship—Akdeniz [“Mediterranean]. This triggered a request for an additional inspection, this one by the flag state, that delays our April 26 planned departure”.
The coalition said this was another “example of Israel obstructing the delivery of life-saving aid to the people in Gaza who face a deliberately created famine”, adding that it was not the first time Israel had used “these kinds of tactics to stop our ships from sailing”.
Aid workers from 40 countries are due to deliver 5,000 tons of aid to Gaza using the Akdeniz.
How Gaza’s children are preparing for Israel’s invasion of Rafah
As an Israeli ground assault on Gaza’s last ‘safe zone’ looms, two children in Rafah brace for it.
“We’re afraid people will resort to killing each other for food,” 11-year-old Husam says as he recounts his daily battle to secure basic necessities like food, water and sanitation in Rafah during Israel’s war on Gaza.
Husam is one of more than 600,000 children who have sought refuge in the city, the designated “safe zone” in southern Gaza. But since March, the Israeli government has threatened to extend a military invasion there, too, casting a shadow of fear that has been building for months. “A person’s psyche wears out with fear. It’s a slow death,” Husam says as he reflects on what lies ahead.
